Kennedy Law Associates' Blog

According to data from the Pew Research Center, older couples in North Carolina and the rest of the United States have been getting divorced at a rate that is twice what it was in the 1900s. People over the age of 50 and who are near retirement will find it particularly important to know how to properly divide their assets, especially their retirement assets, during the divorce process.

In order to properly split a 401(k) plan or pension, it will be necessary to obtain a qualified domestic relations order. This legal document details the right of a divorcing spouse to obtain a portion or all of the accountholder's plan. After the QDRO is given to the administrator of the plan, the specified amount will be transferred to the divorcing spouse.

An increasing number of young people marrying in North Carolina and across the country is also making use of prenuptial agreements, according to a lawyers' organization. The American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers said that over the past 20 years, the frequency of prenuptial agreements has quintupled among people of all ages. However, in the past several years, the number of millennials in the 18 to 34 age range requesting prenups has grown in particular.

The matrimonial attorneys attributed this rising interest in prenuptial agreements to several factors, including the fact that many young people marry at later ages than people in the past. This means that they often have significant assets, careers or businesses before marriage, so the financial aspects of a prenup can be particularly compelling. In particular, people may want to protect their stake in a startup business or the retirement funds they have accumulated in the workplace. Men marry at an average age of 29 and women at 27, an increase of three and four years respectively over the average age in the 1980s.

While some divorces in North Carolina present very few surprises, this isn't always the case. According to an online marketplace survey, nearly half of all divorced women surveyed reported experiencing financial surprises. The study involved nearly 2,000 adult women who were either about to start the divorce process, going through it or already divorced. More than 20 percent of the participants were women 55 or older although Gen X and millennial women also participated.

As far as what constitutes an "unpleasant surprise" during a divorce, some women may not be fully aware of the marital debt, such as expenses related to the primary home mortgage and 401(k) loans. Divorcing women sometimes also fail to have a plan in place for returning to the workforce while others assume that alimony and child support payments will be higher or last longer. Additional financial surprises may involve ownership of the marital home, costs associated with health insurance coverage and failure to anticipate costs associated with getting a divorce.

Divorce is a difficult and emotional process for anyone, but if you and your spouse have children, a lot of the real work begins only after the divorce is final. That is because the hard job of co-parenting requires the two of you to follow a parenting and custody plan as outlined in the divorce agreement or court order, during a time when you would probably rather not have to remain in contact.

Co-parenting is a challenge, and it is not easy to do it well. However, there are some tips that can help you move forward in co-parenting together with your former spouse, so that your children will benefit from your efforts.