When you separate from your spouse, one of the things you will have to consider is how much you will receive from the divorce property settlement. Changes can be made to the property interests of the two parties if the court decides. But there are several considerations that will lead to this judgment such as the contributions made by each party to the property whether financial or non-financial and the welfare of the family. If there are children, they will need to be taken care of.
It can take a very long time to examine the financial contributions made to the property by each party. And this will be even more difficult when it comes to non-financial contributions. This is because a monetary value has to be made on these contributions for the court to weigh in. Property settlement lawyers will help the couple reach an agreement on how to separate the finances after the divorce. This is called the divorce agreement. Generally, the assets will be divided as per the agreement of the spouses in most cases. There are times when no agreement is forthcoming where you will need to go for mediation. Here, a mediator will speak to the two parties and try to see if there is a way out to resolving the issues and coming to an agreement on how the assets can be divided. In some cases, even this avenue can fail and you can try negotiating an agreement with the partner assisted by a family lawyer.
When all else fails, the last resort is going to a Family Court judge who will rule on how the assets are to be divided. If the parties are in agreement with the divorce settlement, this can be finalized in about two weeks. However, the amount of time for mediation can take more time and sometimes months when there are disagreements between the two parties. When you are resolving the issue at the Court, you may be looking at about 3 years for a resolution at maximum. The reason that these cases can be so complicated is that all the property that you and your partner had will need to be divided and these assets will be called marital property. This can be assets that one person had at the beginning of the marriage before things were made official and assets that were brought in after. But the division of the assets will not be divided equally.
To determine the divorce property settlement, all the financial records of the two parties will be examined to measure their worth. This can be bank accounts that are individually owned, shares, properties, interests etc. Once the assets are established, the court will look at the contributions made by each party to them during the relationship whether financial or non-financial. The former include inheritances, wages etc. and the latter can be renovations, housework and looking after children. The future needs of the parties will be considered and an adjustment will then be made to allow for these by considering the health of the parties, their capacity for earning, financial resources etc. Lastly, the court will consider whether the decision taken is fair and equitable for both parties.
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