You may have heard that divorce is a process. This isn’t a metaphor for the stressful and emotional tug of war that you have to deal with during your divorce. It really is a process that has certain requirements that you must follow for the divorce to be legally complete. Depending on the state that you live in, you may have different requirements or adjustments to the timeline.
No matter what, be prepared to step into a world of the unknown. “The hardest thing for me was not knowing anything about the legal process — I had no divorced family members or friends,” mother of two Alicia Brodt told Mom.com.
There is a lot of paperwork involved, and you don’t want to make a mistake and risk losing something important like custody rights because you didn’t file the correct response to something.
Here are five steps to take before filing and after.
Initial filing and cooling off period
Things often overlooked in divorce agreements
5. Think of the little things
There are a lot of things that even amicable divorces forget to address during the divorce. Howard tells us that one of the most commonly overlooked items is “which parent gets to claim the child” on tax returns for the deductions and head of household status. If you share 50-50 custody, one parent is given a legal right to claim an extra day for tax purposes. Otherwise, this can be a nightmare later on. Little things like health insurance are often forgotten and leave someone at risk of losing insurance.
Don’t forget to check beneficiaries on retirement plans and life insurance policies. Unless there is a custody reason to keep an ex as the beneficiary, it is better to establish a trust for the kids and have the trust become the beneficiary of these types of accounts.
To hear experienced insight from divorce attorney Jonna Spilbor on the steps to take before filing for divorce, check out these episodes of Divorce Tips:
