Several years ago, I was doing a will for a client whose wife had Alzheimer’s Disease. She didn’t recognize him anymore, yet, he was committed to caring for her at home. He ensured she had the round-the-clock nursing care she needed, allowing him to go out during the day. We talked about the documents he would need and his legacy. At the end of the meeting, I got up from the conference table to see him out. He continued to … read more »
Perhaps Beyoncé is wrong?
I didn’t change my paycheck direct deposit when I got married. The money still went into my checking account in my name. I transferred funds into the joint account each month to cover my share of the mortgage etc. I figured that the money in my checking account was mine and the money in the joint account was ours. Boy was I wrong. New York State defines marriage as an economic partnership. This means that everything either spouse earns during … read more »
How to Keep Divorce Costs Down – Even When You Are Litigating
One of the things that amazes me about the divorce process is how expensive it is. Let’s start with the lawyer’s hourly rates. Who charges like that? Your plumber might charge about $150/hour. The car mechanic might charge about the same, or a little less. Therapists charge a lot, and many don’t take insurance. Doctors often charge more, but they do take health insurance. But I don’t know any other service provider who works with individuals who charge $400, $500, … read more »
The High Cost of Divorce
I teach family law at CUNY Law School and the semester started a few weeks ago. Here I was on the first day back (hat hair and all): This week, I brought in a well-respected colleague as a guest to talk about how a contested divorce moves through the court system. He told the students about discovery demands and motion practice and preliminary conferences and a lot of time-consuming stuff. And then he mentioned his hourly rate, and there was an audible gasp … read more »
What is a QDRO?
What is a QDRO? A Qualified Domestic Relations Order (QDRO – pronounced Quad-roh) has to do with the division of a retirement account in a divorce. So let’s break this down: Retirement accounts (or at least the parts that grow during a marriage) are considered to be marital property, and will usually be divided between the spouses upon divorce. Qualified plans are qualified for special tax treatment. This applies to Individual Retirement Accounts (IRAs), pensions, 401(k) and 403(b) accounts, etc. … read more »
What’s in Your Wallet? (Do You Know?)
One of the things that I’ve noticed when I mediate is that one person in a couple is often much more financially literate than the other. What do I mean by this? That one person has a better sense of what things cost, what the family needs, and what their financial futures might be. Often one person pays the bills and the other person has only a vague idea of what the household budget is — just that the credit … read more »
Making a Better Child Support Agreement
A few months ago, I wrote a few notes about spousal maintenance. Today, I’d like to write a few notes about child support that I think are important to keep in mind. I gave a basic overview of child support last year, but I thought I would take the time to write about it again, since this is such an important part of any separation agreement. (You’re learning along with my students!) The Child Support Formula In an effort to … read more »
What’s Fair Is Fair… Or Is It?
“I only want what is equitable. That is my operating principle,” Raymond explained as he sat across from me the first time we met. His wife, Lenore, looked intensely at him. “But what you consider to be equitable is not fair to me,” she said quietly. ‘What was going on here?’ I wondered. I’d only met them for a few minutes, but I could see already that they might have some fundamental differences of opinion — in fact, they might … read more »
NY Spousal Maintenance
In the last post, A Few Notes About Spousal Maintenance, I wrote about new considerations that must be made because of recent changes to the federal tax law. Today, I’d like to circle back to explore the purpose and a little bit of the history of New York spousal maintenance laws. Spousal maintenance, or alimony, is a term for periodic and regular support payments from one ex-spouse to the other for a specified length of time. The concept of alimony … read more »
4 Steps for Dividing Marital Property
One of the most important steps in creating a divorce agreement is deciding how you will divide marital (or joint) property. This is called division of assets. Here are the basic steps: Identify all of the property either spouse owns. You must share detailed information with each other, including: Bank account numbers and balances as of a specific date. Be sure to include checking, savings, and brokerage accounts. Retirement accounts like pensions, annuities, stock options, deferred compensation, and bonuses. Do … read more »