Divorce is a complex process. Dividing marital assets fairly, for example, is rarely a walk in the park. Georgia adheres to an equitable division standard, meaning assets acquired during a marriage are split based on what’s fair, not necessarily a 50/50 split, in the event of a litigated property division process. While some assets are easily valued and divided, others pose a significant challenge. Couples who are considering divorce in the Peach State can benefit from proactively considering how they’ll want to address marital assets that can cause headaches, as a result. Retirement accounts ..read more

Child custody arrangements in Georgia have to address two specific areas that form the basis of a parenting situation post-split. These are legal and physical custody, both of which govern specific decisions related to a child’s life. Legal custody pertains to the right to make major decisions affecting the child’s welfare, including education, health care and religious upbringing. Parents may share legal custody, which means they have to make decisions together about these matters. In some cases, the court may give this decision-making power in a specific area to one parent so that person wou ..read more

Those contemplating divorce in Georgia often have reason to worry about their finances and future opportunities. Divorce not only costs money but also typically affects the assets that someone holds. Those who have saved for retirement during their marriages may worry about what could become of their financial resources during a Georgia divorce, for example. Particularly when people use specialized divorce savings accounts, like 401(k)s, they may worry about losing their retirement savings. Some people even feel trapped in unhealthy marriages because they do not want to divide what they have s ..read more

Dividing property and other assets during divorce can be a highly emotional process. However, it’s crucial to be smart about it. That means looking at the long-term financial and tax impacts of keeping an asset, letting your spouse have it or agreeing to sell it and adding the proceeds to the marital estate for division. The complexity of the process is why many divorcing spouses consult with their own financial and tax professionals in addition, of course, to seeking experienced legal representation. One concern that many people have is whether they’ll have to pay capital gains tax on propert ..read more

Property division is frequently the most challenging aspect of divorce. Not every couple has children, but almost all married couples share some resources or debts. Negotiating an equitable or fair way to split property and resolve financial obligations is often a difficult task. People can become quite emotional at the prospect of losing certain resources, such as access to the marital home or their retirement savings. Those in high-asset households often have much more contentious divorces because of the disagreements spouses may have about valuable marital assets. A high-earning professiona ..read more

Most divorces, particularly those involving contested custody matters or sizable assets, necessitate legal representation. Those preparing for divorce seek legal assistance to better ensure a favorable outcome. Their attorney can handle paperwork, negotiations and many other technical aspects of the divorce process. A lawyer can also provide guidance and advice that can make a big difference for someone whose emotions may occasionally overwhelm their rational decision-making abilities during their divorce proceedings. Typically, people obtain the best results by having a lawyer represent them ..read more

There’s no question that domestic violence is a very real issue in many marriages. However, it’s also true that allegations of domestic violence are sometimes used as a weapon in divorces. Weaponized domestic violence allegations refer to the manipulation of the court system – which generally takes the approach that “it’s better to be safe than sorry” when it comes to granting ex parte protective orders – to gain the perceived upper hand in some factor of the divorce. What are the usual motivations for false domestic violence claims? Experts say that weaponized allegations of abuse are a form ..read more

One of the most complicated parts of a divorce case involves dividing the assets that the couple owns. The things that they have accumulated during their marriage are generally going to count as marital assets, while items from before the marriage began will generally count as separate assets. As a result, the first part of the complicated process is simply determining which assets qualify as items that are jointly owned. Some of these assets can ultimately create more complications than others. For example, a couple may not find it difficult to divide financial accounts, at least once they de ..read more

Property division matters often inspire intense disputes between divorcing spouses. In fact, some people will break the law and engage in clearly unethical conduct in their desire to alter the outcome of property division proceedings in a Georgia divorce. Some people hide property to avoid sharing it with their spouse. There are others who will happily diminish the marital estate just so that they have less to share with their spouse. Dissipation or the intentional wasting of marital property can impact what a judge determines is fair when dividing the assets that belong to a couple in a conte ..read more

When couples who have remained married for years and who are over the age of 50 decide to divorce, the situation may be referred to as a gray divorce. In a legal sense, a gray divorce is essentially the same as any other marital dissolution. The same laws apply regarding property and support matters, and spouses can expect the same exact process at the negotiating table and/or in the courts. However, in a practical sense, a gray divorce is often very different from divorces that occur after shorter marriages end earlier in life. Those who are considering divorce after many years of marriage an ..read more