Typically, the most stressful times in a Florida divorce timeline is the stress involved on when to file and wondering what comes next. Below are valuable divorce tips from a Stuart, FL divorce lawyer.
- Start putting aside money.
Divorce may be expensive, or it may be reasonable in cost if the case is not contested. You will need to have money in case your spouse cuts you off financially. If this happens, it takes some time to get into court before a judge on a motion for temporary relief (temporary child support and/or alimony). Oftentimes, divorce judges make the parties attempt mediation before even being able to present the motion or temporary relief in court. It is advisable to open a separate bank account in your own name prior to filing for divorce. You will have to disclose the account in the divorce, of course.
- Open a new email with a highly secure password.
For couples who have resided together for many years, your spouse may know your password and have access to your email. Much of your communications with your attorney will be by email. Nothing would be more damaging to a case than a spouse having access to confidential communications between his or her spouse and his or her attorney. When opening a new email, make sure to open it with a very unique password using numbers and symbols.
- If you and your spouse have a joint cell phone plan, obtain your own cell phone.
These days it is very easy to track spouses using features such as “find my friend”, airtags and by adding an email to the messaging settings. This would allow spouses to know where you are and to read texts that you receive and send. Also, on many occasions, angry and controlling spouses will cancel the cell phone of a spouse, which, of course, causes a panic. Do yourself a favor and get your own cell phone before filing for divorce.
- Get your financial documents, such as bank, credit card and tax records, together and organized.
Much of the stress involved in a divorce involves financial issues between you and your spouse. It will relieve a great deal of stress if you have the records organized rather than having to quickly produce them within a short period of time after filing for divorce. Among other documents, in Florida, spouses involved in divorce will need to produce bank, credit card, tax, 401K records, mortgage statements, loan documents, deeds, automobile loan records, automobile policies and much more. Further, providing these records to your attorney at the beginning will allow your attorney to properly advise you early on. For a list of the documents required to be exchanged at the begging of a divorce click here: Florida Mandatory Disclosure.
- Pull your own credit report before filing your Martin County divorce.
In many marriages, especially long-term marriages, one spouse does all the bill-paying, banking, shopping, etc. In these cases, the spouses who did not engage in such activities are oftentimes not aware of all the debts associated with their names and social security numbers. Divorce lawyers will want to ensure that such marital debts are dealt with in the divorce. One of the most important pieces of divorce advice from a Stuart FL divorce lawyer is to pull your credit report early to understand your true finances.
For free divorce advice from a Stuart FL Divorce Lawyer call the divorce attorneys at Van Riper and Nies Attorneys at 772-283-8712.