Trusts are complex fiduciary mechanisms designed to protect and preserve assets. Some people believe that assets held in a trust are protected in a divorce. However, depending on a variety of factors, those assets may still be subject to property division.
People going through a divorce often want to know whether the court will award alimony and, if so, the amount and duration of the alimony award. Judges are not limited to a strict formula, which makes it challenging to predict the exact amount of an alimony award. Instead, judges are guided by numerous statutory factors.
Under the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, starting January 1st of 2019, alimony payments will no longer be deductible from a payor's income, nor will they be taxed as income to the payee.
This change represents a dramatic change in the federal tax law as it pertains to divorcing couples. Experts have speculated that the change in the tax law could lead to several consequences, ranging from a race to resolving divorces before the end of 2018 to people simply no longer initiating actions to dissolve their marriage. In reality, these forecasts may be extreme. However, for those whose divorces involve alimony claims, also known as spousal maintenance, there will be changes.
Gray divorce, the term describing couples over 50 years of age who wish to dissolve their marriage, is on the rise. In fact, the divorce rate for people over 50 doubled since 1990, and tripled for people over 65. While these couples typically do not need to address child related issues like child custody, they do face a much greater risk of drastic changes to their financial condition.
One of the most important aspects of your case is the relationship with your attorney. Your attorney has many responsibilities to you, and if he or she is not satisfying these obligations, you should seek a second opinion from another attorney.
Actress Angelina Jolie and her ex-husband, actor Brad Pitt, have been in the news recently due to their ongoing child custody battle. Jolie was accused of preventing Pitt from communicating with their six children by cell phone. Summer custody of the children was also an issue.
According to an article from NBC, a temporary custody agreement was ultimately reached. Nevertheless, the Court warned Jolie that she risked losing physical custody of the children if she did not allow the children to develop relationships with their father. The judge said:
For many divorcing couples, the most substantial asset to be divided is a business owned by one or both of the spouses. The value of this asset, not to mention the emotional component involved in family-owned businesses and businesses that individuals built from the ground up, means that this is often a source of contention. Knowing the rules of property division as they apply to businesses can be beneficial.
Before a business can be divided in a divorce, it must be valued. This can be a particularly complex process, which can become even more challenging depending on the type and size of the business involved. It is critical to understand the varieties of business valuation methodology and how they work prior to moving forward.
One of the most important aspects of your case is the relationship with your attorney. Your attorney has many responsibilities to you, and if he or she is not satisfying these obligations, you should seek a second opinion from another attorney.
To schedule a meeting with one of our trusted and respected family law attorneys, please call 203-557-9755 or contact us by email.
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Parrino|Shattuck, PC
285 Riverside Avenue, Suite 450
Westport,
CT
06880
Phone:
203.557.9755
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