Deciding to end a marriage is a life-changing step that requires careful planning, particularly when securing your personal finances. Preparing your financial records, separating joint accounts properly, and establishing a realistic budget are essential actions before submitting a petition in Maricopa County.
Consulting with an experienced Chandler divorce lawyer early in the process ensures you take the right protective measures without violating Arizona community property rules. At Wilson-Goodman Law Group PLLC, we immediately help you evaluate your marital estate and take control of your financial standing from day one.
It’s beneficial to open new bank accounts before filing for divorce. Your new checking and savings accounts should be in only your name. There are two simple ways to ensure that the new account doesn’t begin as community property under Arizona’s community property divorce law.
In Arizona, your earnings remain marital property until after you and your spouse separate. To keep your new account from commingling and becoming marital property, you should open the account with money that is your separate property. This could be from an inheritance or an amount gifted to you from someone outside of the marriage. If this isn’t possible, then the second way to open an account without commingling is to wait until just after the separation date.
Once you’ve opened a new bank account, do not deposit any marital funds into the account, including your earned income, until after the divorce is final. Keep detailed records of any deposits you make into the account, including the source of the funds, to ensure that you have evidence that no deposits came from the marital pool.
After the finalization of the divorce, close all of your joint accounts.
After you file for divorce, the next step in the process will be submitting full financial disclosures. You can prepare for this by creating a file to organize key information such as the following:
For complex estates involving executive compensation or closely held companies, partnering with an attorney skilled in Chandler high net worth divorce ensures all marital assets and liabilities are accurately identified and valued.
If you have separate assets, such as an inheritance or valuable property that’s been gifted solely to you during the divorce, it’s important to provide documentation of your separate assets to disclose to your lawyer. Your divorce attorney will advise you on the best way to protect your separate assets during the divorce process.
It’s helpful to have plans in place for how the divorce will proceed and your expectations for life after divorce, such as where each of you will live and how you plan to share custody of the children, so you can confidently answer any questions from concerned and loving family members.
Carefully consider such plans as keeping the family home. Sometimes a divorcing spouse argues determinedly to keep the marital home, often by trading it for other substantial assets, such as a retirement account, only to discover later that they cannot afford it. It helps to speak to a financial advisor before choosing to keep a family home.
Taking control of your finances prior to filing can significantly lessen stress and protect your financial independence during a marital dissolution. At Wilson-Goodman Law Group PLLC, our client-first legal team draws on decades of experience to help you safeguard your assets and plan confidently for your future. Whether you need a dedicated Chandler family law attorney to guide you through property division or a skilled advocate to help restructure your business owners divorce, we are here to support you every step of the way. Contact our firm today to schedule your free, no-obligation consultation to review your case and protect your rights.
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