I’ve had consultations where the person said, “Well I assume I will get the house since I stay home with the kids” or “I will take half of what we have when I move out”. The problem with these is that they are assumptions and you know what they say about assume….
When children are involved in a divorce the divorce is rarely a simple situation. Usually there are complex issues around that. Just because you have been the primary caretaker does not mean that you are the one that will automatically be the primary caretaker when the divorce is final. Many factors go into the best interest of the child and having been the primary caretaker is just one of them. Some others are: providing their needs, disciplining the children, showing medical history, showing educational history, etc. This is not an exhaustive list and each case has its own unique set of facts.
Even if you are primary does not mean you would get to stay in the family home. Being able to present evidence to support your ability to pay for the house is going to be a big factor for the Judge. Further, to effect a just and right division of the estate may require selling the residence and splitting the proceeds. Again there are many factors involved and each case is different.
Assuming you can just take one half of everything you own is not safe either. There may be viable reasons that one party should be awarded a specific desk or chair or car etc. You may find that at a final trial for your divorce you may be returning some items to the other party based on a Judge’s order. Further, the Judge may determine that a just and right division is not a 50/50 but rather a 55/45 split.
So before you make assumptions, speak with a family law attorney to help guide you through some of these situations.
1 Comment
Agree! Divorce is not a simple process. One needs to hire a professional family lawyer to handle the divorce process.