New Divorce Clients Frequently Ask About How They Can Maintain Their Lifestyle After Divorce
In high-net-worth divorces spouses may be concerned about their ability to maintain their lifestyle after the divorce. While there is no absolute right to have everything to which you are accustomed, the law protects the spouse who finds themselves disadvantaged by divorce. Non-working spouses with limited income and resources are concerned about being able to meet their needs, while similarly, the spouse with greater income and resources may be concerned about meeting their own needs while also paying to support children and their former spouse.
At Scroggins Law Group in Plano, Board-Certified attorney Mark L. Scroggins and his team of talented trial lawyers with high-net-worth divorce litigation experience consider the entire financial outlook in the divorce and create a strategy to get clients what is just and right.
Property Division
One way to maintain your lifestyle after divorce is to maximize property division. Texas is a community property state where non-separate property is community property subject to division. There are factors your attorney can use to seek a greater share of the assets and property in the marital estate. High-net-worth divorce finance experts can explain options to reach goals and maintain lifestyles by creating property division plans that create advantages for both spouses. For example, one spouse might prefer to receive the marital home free and clear or a greater share of community property as opposed to spousal maintenance.
Spousal Maintenance
Even in high-net-worth divorces, spouses seeking maintenance may be surprised learning that long-term maintenance is increasingly rare. Where there are opportunities for both spouses to support themselves financially, judges order spousal maintenance to sustain spouses after the divorce while they work to increase their own income. Nevertheless there are cases where long-term maintenance is awarded and it is important to use a sophisticated divorce trial lawyer to win a long-term maintenance case.
The court uses a list of factors in determining a spousal maintenance award when a spouse is eligible to receive spousal maintenance, because of family violence or in cases where one spouse has a disability, cares for a child with a disability, or the parties have otherwise been married for 10 years or more where the spouse seeking spousal maintenance lacks the ability to earn income to meet their minimum reasonable needs. These factors are used to determine the nature, amount, duration and manner of periodic maintenance payments.
Structured Monthly Payments
Experienced divorce attorneys know how judges typically rule when divorce litigants cannot reach agreements. Once there is a general agreement about property division and spousal maintenance if it is allowable, the attorneys can help their clients with the best options to effectuate division and payments. For example, if one spouse is to receive a lump sum payment for property division or support, that money can be established in a trust to pay regular periodic income.
Mark L. Scroggins Helps Clients Maintain Their Lifestyle After Divorce
Maintaining your lifestyle after a divorce requires good legal advice to protect your future. There are too many stories about spouses who receive significant money in divorce and lose it due to mismanagement, inexperience and being targeted by investment and money managers with their own best interests in mind.
Mark L. Scroggins is Board-Certified* in family law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization and is experienced in high-net-worth divorce where there are opportunities to be creative when advocating for clients in property division and spousal maintenance matters. Call Scroggins Law Group in Plano for more information about maintaining your lifestyle after divorce by dialing (469) 626-5220.
