Decisions made during your divorce can have a major impact on your current lifestyle, your relationships with your children, and your future financial security. Having an experienced Boston divorce lawyer on your side is vital to ensuring important issues are dealt with and that your rights are protected through the divorce process.
Issues that must be addressed in your divorce
There are four types of divorce in Massachusetts. A fault or no-fault divorce relates to any marital misconduct that may have occurred on the part of you or your spouse. A contested or uncontested divorce concerns whether both of you consent to the divorce and how important divorce-related matters are resolved. In all of these cases, there are four important issues that need to be addressed:
Marital property and Asset division
Massachusetts is known as an equitable division state. This means that in divorce proceedings, rather than dividing all marital property and assets in half between the two spouses, the judge will consider various factors in the case in reaching a settlement that is reasonable to both. Marital property includes anything earned, acquired, or otherwise accumulated during the marriage, such as homes, cars, household furnishings, money in bank accounts, business interests, and retirement benefits.
Division of Marital Debts
In addition to dividing all marital property you possess, you will also need to divide all marital debts. This includes mortgages, car payments, personal loans, credit cards, medical bills, and outstanding tax payments. Making a complete list of all debts owed by you or your spouse and attempting to pay them off prior to a final order can help you in making a fresh start post-divorce.
Alimony
Under Section 34 of Massachusetts divorce laws, alimony may be ordered in a divorce depending on the length of the marriage, each party’s individual income and assets, and whether one sacrificed their own career or education for the sake of the marriage. Alimony can help the receiving spouse maintain the same manner of living they enjoyed during the marriage while gaining the experience or training needed to reenter the workforce.
Child custody and support
Child custody is one of the most hotly debated issues in divorce proceedings. If you and your former partner have children together, one spouse may be awarded custody while the other gets visitation or a shared parenting plan may be coordinated. Factors that are likely to influence these proceedings include each parent’s current and prior relationship with the child, their ability to cooperate with each other in sharing custody, and whether there are any circumstances involved that could put the child at risk. Child support will be based on these arrangements.
Reach out to our boston divorce lawyer
Get the trusted legal guidance you need in resolving important divorce-related issues and reach out to Parousis Law. Our Boston divorce lawyer is dedicated to helping you get the best possible outcome in your case in Boston, Back Bay, Beacon Bay, Allston, or the South End . Call or contact our office online and request a consultation today.