When you are going through a difficult divorce it can be very complicated to juggle so many things. The emotional impact of your divorce is frequently hard enough to manage, but then you also have to take into account all the practical issues such as whether you have children still living at home, child support, alimony, the house, closing joint accounts and generating new accounts. And then there is the massive task of figuring out how you are going to make it on your own financially. This is a primary concern for many women because many women do not understand the benefits of getting a fair share of retirement assets during a divorce. Overlooking this can be a huge mistake and cost you in many different ways. It is important to know that you should not count on these funds to be automatically divided between you and your husband in the process of a divorce. You need to understand how these retirement assets may be divided and the various documents and strategies you need to consider.
Basics of Retirement Benefits
Retirement benefits will not automatically be divided during a divorce. Much like other marital assets, the agreement between you and your spouse or a divorce court judge will determine how the benefits are divided. You need to find out as many details as possible about these benefits earned by you as well as your husband over the course of the marriage. Then you need to consult with your attorney to discuss protecting your right to those various benefits. There are many different kinds of retirement benefits. They could include 401(k) plans, 403(b) plans, deferred compensation plans and pension plans. Your spouse may also have 401(k) assets in an individual retirement account if he changed jobs once or more during the course of your marriage. You need to carefully consider all potential former employers because any employer can sponsor an employee for retirement benefits.
Marital Property and Retirement Benefits
Divorce law in the majority of states considers retirement benefits earned by the wife or the husband during the marriage as marital property. Of course you should consult with your own family lawyer to verify this. There are various interpretations in different states especially when it comes to determining when retirement benefits are actual marital property. You need to ask two critical questions of your divorce attorney: which benefits are divisible and when does the marital property stop accumulating? As it relates to the first question, depending on state law, all the retirement benefits accumulated during the marriage can be divided. This is defined contribution plans and defined benefit plans. While states do differ in the various types of benefits considered marital property, you can identify which accounts will be considered during your divorce by consulting with your divorce attorney. As it relates to the second question, many states will consider the date of divorce as the timeline marital property officially stops accumulating. However, other states might divide the property earned up to the separation date or some other date that has been named.
Source : articlesbase.com
0 comments:
Post a Comment