Couples that plan to divorce would be wise to do some type of pre-divorce planning. Some of the issues to keep in mind are: How much money will the supporting spouse have to pay? And, how much money will the supported spouse receive? These are important issues that should be considered. This will allow each party to plan for post-separation days and budget his or her finances.

It is also important to consider issues such as who is moving out of the family residence? How close from the other spouse and children should a person stay? Can a spouse withdraw money from joint accounts? All of these issues are important and can have consequences in a divorce. As such, it is always a good idea for a person who is planning to divorce to meet with an attorney and get legal advise.

However, the type of planning that should not be considered are ways in which to shield assets or hide assets from the other spouse. Spouses have fiduciary duties to each other and if one party is planning ways to hide assets from the other this is a breach of that duty. Similarly, one spouse is required to disclose to the other spouse all of the assets that exists. Omitting assets and failure to disclose is also a breach of that spouses fiduciary duty to the other spouse. Hence, long gone are the days when one spouse started pre-divorce planning well in advance of filing or informing the other spouse about his or her desire to divorce. Courts require that spouses deal with each other fairly and honestly.

Nevertheless, spouses still need to plan for life after separation. For more information and an in depth consultation with one of our caring and affordable attorneys, we can be contacted at 800-589-9901 or info@dieferlaw.com.