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Collaborative Divorce Solutions of Orange County

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  • The Collaborative Process
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Irvine Divorce

10 Best Reasons To Do Your Divorce Collaboratively

August 4, 2016 By CDSOC

by John R. Denny, Family Law Attorney Hittelman Strunk Law Group, LLP, Newport Beach, California

  1. The team approach helps you get through the process without going to war.

You will work with a team of legal, financial, and mental health professionals who are specifically trained in the Collaborative Process. They agree to work with you to reach a settlement outside of court.

  1. You make the decisions, not the judge.

In the Collaborative Process, the parties do not go to court. They resolve their differences through cooperative negotiation. Thus, all orders are made with both parties’ agreement.

  1. The process is less expensive than a litigated divorce.

While all cases are different, studies show that a successful Collaborative case is less expensive than a litigated case, even one which settles before trial.

  1. Coaches help you and your spouse learn to communicate in ways which can reduce the adversarial nature of the divorce.

In a full team Collaborative Divorce, each party will work with an assigned mental health professional acting as a coach. Among other things, the coach will assist the party to avoid the type of communication which will further divide the parties, and make settlement more costly and difficult.

  1. Your children’s interests are taken into account, and brought forth through a neutral child specialist.

The child specialist’s role is to be the voice of your children at the Collaborative negotiation table. The child specialist speaks to the children at age-appropriate levels. This enables both parents to have a clearer perspective on what their children really think and feel.

  1. More privacy – less of a court record.

Because you are not in court, your case does not become a public record. The only documents filed with the court are those absolutely necessary to make your agreement legal. You will not file declarations telling the world your private business.

  1. You can avoid going to court.

Because Collaborative Divorces are processed outside of court, you will not be subject to court rules, except those necessary for the court to process your judgment. You will not have to give public testimony in court. You will not have to miss work, or other important functions, to attend court on a date which may be inconvenient for you. You can go as fast or slow as you choose, and not be subject to the delays which budget shortages increasingly cause in litigated divorce cases.

  1. The process allows for more creative resolutions than the court is permitted to offer.

The court is bound by California statutes dictating what must be done in terms of property division, support, and custody. In a Collaborative Divorce, the parties are free (and assisted) to reach a result which uniquely fits their family.

  1. You will acquire skills which will enable you to more effectively co-parent after the divorce.

The Collaborative Process requires the parties to work together in order to solve the issues in their divorce. Working together is a skill which many couples facing divorce have lost. It is exactly what they will need to do in order to effectively co-parent their children after divorce. Thus, going through the process helps the parties with the skills they will need post-divorce.

  1. Result of a Collaborative Divorce: a better life after divorce.

There will be many events for the rest of your lives which a couple will both want to attend post-divorce without making it awkward for everyone else who is there. When you have children, these events include graduations, weddings, and grandchildren events.

Even when you do not have children, there are often overlaps in family and friends. Events with these people can be much less awkward when the divorce process itself has not driven the parties even further apart. This may be the best – and most lasting – reason to do your divorce collaboratively.

Filed Under: Child Custody, Child Specialist, Child Support, Collaborative Practice, Divorce and Emotions, Divorce and Money, Divorce and The Law, Family Issues Tagged With: California, Cost of Divorce, Divorce and Children, Divorce and Families, Divorce and Privacy, Divorce Litigation, Irvine, Irvine Divorce, John Denny, Less Expensive Divorce, Settlement Agreement

Social Security and How It Affects Your Divorce

July 28, 2016 By CDSOC

by Tracy S. McKenney, CFP®, CDFA™
Irvine, California

When a couple divorces, you may wonder whether anything happens to their Social Security benefits.  What if the husband has been employed the entire marriage and the wife has stayed home with the children?  Do they split the husband’s Social Security benefit at retirement?  What if one of them remarries?

First, divorce laws are different from state to state.  Social Security is a federal program and can’t be overridden by

Orange County Divorce Financial Analyst Tracy McKenney
Tracy McKenney

divorce laws or a divorce judgment in any individual state including California.  California courts cannot issue a divorce judgment to ‘split’ Social Security payments at retirement, because the federal rules governing Social Security override them.

What does the law say about Social Security and Divorce?

As of summer 2016, if a person has been married longer than 10 years and then gets divorced, the ex-spouse can receive 50 percent of their former spouse’s Social Security benefit –OR- 100 percent of their own Social Security benefit.  Notice: you can collect only ONE benefit, not both.

For example, “Dolly” and “Dennis” got divorced when Dolly was age 52, and Dennis was age 54.  Dennis decided to start collecting Social Security when he turned 67.  Dolly only worked part-time for most of their 27 year marriage.  She decided to start collecting Social Security benefits as soon as possible, at age 62.  Dennis collected on his own benefit because it was higher than ex-spouse Dolly’s benefit.  Dolly made an appointment with her local Social Security office two months before she turned age 62.  Dennis’s benefit was higher than hers so she collected based upon his benefit.  Note: Anytime you start social security earlier than your full retirement age (see more below), you will receive a reduced benefit.

Before your ex-spouse gets angry over losing half of his or her government retirement benefits, the Social Security Administration is willing to pay out 100 percent to your ex-spouse and 50 percent to you from your ex-spouse’s work history.  Yes, Social Security will pay 150 percent if you meet the qualifications.

Social Security payments can start as early as age 62.  Your monthly payments are reduced at age 62.  Full Retirement Age (FRA) is based upon your birth year.  FRA is age 65 for anyone born before 1937; 66 for anyone born 1943-1954; and age 67 for anyone born 1960 or later.  You can look up your own FRA at www.ssa.gov.  Be aware the FRA age for you personally is based upon YOUR age, not your ex-spouse’s age.  If you delay claiming Social Security benefits until age 70, you will receive additional income if you claim on your own work history, but will NOT receive additional income at age 70 if you claim based upon your ex-spouse’s work history.

Remarriage Affects Your Retirement Benefits

What happens if either ex-spouse remarries?  If you remarry before age 60, then you will not be able to claim benefits based upon the ex-spouse’s work history.  If you remarry after age 60, then you can claim based upon your ex-spouse, your current spouse or your own work history.  Choose wisely because you only get ONE benefit.  If you have been married over 10 years more than once, you can claim on either ex-spouse, whichever is more favorable to you.

What happens if your ex-spouse dies?

Social Security has survivor benefits if your ex-spouse dies.  If you are eligible to claim on your ex-spouse’s work history, then you also qualify for a survivor benefit.  You can receive the same benefits as the widow/widower of your ex-spouse.

For more information, go to www.ssa.gov and search ‘divorced spouse benefits’ or ‘divorced survivor benefits.’

Securities offered through Securities America, Inc., a Registered Broker/Dealer, Member FINRA/SIPC.  Tracy S. McKenney, Registered Representative.  Advisory Services offered through Securities America Advisors, Inc., an SEC-Registered Investment Advisor.  Securities America and its representatives do not offer tax or legal advice.  You should consult with and rely on your own legal and tax advisors.  6/2016

Filed Under: Collaborative Divorce, Divorce and Money, Divorce and The Law, Financial Tagged With: Divorce and Retirement, Financial Settlement, Gray Divorce, Irvine Divorce, Retirement Benefits, Social Security, Tracy McKenney

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