Finances & Divorce

As a matrimonial/family law attorney, Certified Financial Divorce Analyst and Certified Financial Litigator, Lisa Zeiderman is best positioned to help her clients make sound financial decisions today that will serve them into their future.

Tackling the complex financial issues of divorce can be overwhelming even for those who are comfortable with numbers. Sometimes the biggest challenge is determining where and even when to start.

Most important is to know what your assets, liabilities and expenses really are—what is the right way to divide the assets to ensure that you receive your full after tax assets? What is your spending rate? Whether I work with people with hundreds of thousands of dollars or $50-$100 million, the biggest issue is living within one’s means – even people with many millions of dollars can burn through monies- -particularly during a divorce. My goal is for you to have a “win-win” financial outcome and a strong post-divorce financial foundation.

Piggy bank

Having a Checklist is Important

How well you are able to navigate through your divorce may rest in large part on your ability to produce documents and evidence that can support your claims for alimony, child support, a division of assets and other important issues. Have you properly analyzed the tax issues? Did you determine whether your restricted stock units (RSUs) were inventively based or are they a bonus for past performance? Which of your IRAs are Roth IRAs, meaning you already paid the taxes and which are not?

Making sure you are treated fairly is vital to provide you the best chance of moving forward in the best possible way after your divorce is finalized.

Whether your divorce issues are narrow and simple or complex and multifaceted, you will still need to acquire a fair amount of information to prepare for divorce.

Gathering this information in a logical and organized way can make the entire process less burdensome on you in both the short and the long run.
Having a divorce checklist helps you organize out the information you need to prepare for divorce.

Your top Financial Checklist of Questions and Hot Topics to Cover to Get You Ready for Divorce:

  1.  Is there a prenuptial and/or postnuptial agreement?
  2. Create a list of assets and liabilities to formulate a marital estate chart
  3. Are there any business interests to value?
  4. Is a vocational analysis for 1 or both spouses necessary To determine capacity to earn?
  5. What other assets must be appraised such as real property and/or personal property such as artwork and jewelry?
  6. List any separate property including but not limited to gifts and inheritances from family members and/or premarital property
  7. List your monthly expenses including carrying costs for marital residence
  8. Determine which assets have tax implications including capital gains taxes and any exemptions that apply
  9. Analyze whether or not it is best to remain in the marital home based upon child support and spousal support as well as other income earning assets
  10. Determine child support
  11. Determine spousal maintenance including amount and duration
  12. Determine pro-rata obligations for what are known as add-on expenses
  13. Are there 529 accounts for your children’s education?
  14. What other large financial obligations are in your future?
  15. How will legal and expert fees be paid?

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