Pre-Divorce Planning: How to Protect Your Assets in a Divorce

Divorces can be both emotionally and financially taxing. When you plan to file for divorce or believe your spouse if planning to file for divorce, you want to be proactive in preparing yourself for emotional, and possibly lengthy, divorce proceedings. Like most life situations, it is always better to be prepared. By thinking about potential issues that may arise throughout your divorce, such as finances or the reasons for the divorce, you can be better prepared to tackle them as they emerge. When you are going through pre-divorce planning and want to know how to protect your assets in a divorce, reach out to our divorce attorneys.

Managing and Tracking Finances

Before the divorce is filed, you should evaluate your income, expenses, assets, and debts. You should gather financial documents, including bank statements, retirement account statements, investment account statements, mortgage statements, credit card statement, insurance policies, wills, and any other essential financial documents. You should also understand your spouse’s financial situation to help your case. You may be able to show discrepancies in your spouse’s financial disclosures or prove any reckless purchases made by your spouse.

Begin saving and depositing money into a separate savings account to help pay for everyday necessities, legal fees, and a mental health professional if the stress has begun to take a toll. You will need to disclose this account in the divorce process and explain the reasons why you created the account.

Prior to filing for divorce, change the beneficiaries in your will and any trusts made for your spouse to protect your assets from being inherited by your spouse if you pass away during the divorce process.

Limiting Spousal Access to Protect Your Assets Before Marriage

In today’s digital world, much of our private information is stored on our social media accounts. While you may not think your posts could harm your case, it is best to change the password to all your accounts. Divorce could motivate your spouse to access your accounts to find information that could help their case. This could result in you receiving less than you are entitled to. Although many people enjoy venting on social media, and you may want to release pent-up emotions regarding your case, you should avoid posting any content referring to the case or your spouse.

You should also change the password for all email addresses and take other steps to ensure that your spouse cannot access your email. This is especially important because you will likely communicate with your attorney by email and these communications are confidential.

Another recommendation you may not have thought of is opening a post office box. As you begin collecting financial documents and information for your case, you want to ensure your spouse does not have access to them. Opening a post office box will keep your spouse from seeing or reading your mail.

Divorce can be a difficult and daunting transition, but there are ways to better prepare yourself for the challenges that come with it. Making a pre-divorce plan can simplify the process and ensure the protection of your assets.

When you plan to file for a divorce or believe your spouse will file for divorce, contact Moskowitz Law Group to talk to a licensed attorney to help you navigate pre-divorce planning and protect your assets in a divorce.