Charlotte Family Law Blog

People in North Carolina might view divorce as a pathway to emotional or personal freedom, but the process places both spouses under legal scrutiny. Soon-to-be exes often experience surprise when they learn that the law limits what they can do with their money or where they can travel with children until a court approves the final divorce settlement. Although typically inconvenient, these legal restrictions are meant to protect people from financial loss or violation of parental rights.

Because divorce requires a division of a couple's financial life, the splitting spouses must refrain from taking out large sums of money, selling property or racking up debts. A court could view such actions as attempts to deny assets to a spouse. When challenged about financial activity, a spouse might have to restore the money so that a court can decide how to divide it.

North Carolina spouses who are going through a divorce can take steps to make the process easier. One of those first steps is prioritizing. Future exes should write down what their needs are in the divorce as well as their wants and the things they are willing to let go.

It is important to think of the divorce as a legal process despite the emotional ramifications. Couples should understand how state and federal laws will govern aspects such as how property is divided. Before divorce negotiations or litigation can begin, spouses should get their financial information in order. This may involve ordering a credit report and gathering paperwork.

If you live in North Carolina and are beginning the process of estate planning and getting your plans for the future in order, you may be giving some thought to how you might best preserve your wealth for future generations. While there are a variety of methods you can use to plan ahead, one method you might consider utilizing to help you protect your hard-earned assets involves establishing what is known as an irrevocable living trust.

An irrevocable living trust can be a great way to protect your assets and help preserve more of them for your beneficiaries. While you cannot change or draw from the trust once you create it (although you may be able to do so through a revocable living trust), there are numerous things you can accomplish by creating one. For example, you can use an irrevocable living trust to:

When North Carolina couples decide that it is time to get a divorce, many reach out to an attorney to get the process started. However, some also take the step to look for a financial planner as divorce could potentially result in serious debt. By working with a team that includes a financial planner, a person may be able to come out of the divorce with his or her finances still intact.

Once a team is in place, a person going through the divorce may want to consider collaboration. A collaborative divorce involves working with the other party to reach an agreement while litigation involves going in front of a judge. While a collaborative divorce is not always possible, it does allow both individuals to maintain some sort of control over how the marital assets will be split.