Protecting Your Standard Of Living In A Divorce
Divorce brings about major changes in your life. These can impact you personally as well as financially. However, this does not mean you should have to sacrifice everything or completely modify the type of lifestyle you previously lived. Determining your standard of living is an important part of getting a divorce in Florida and our Seminole divorce attorney explains how it could impact your rights in divorce-related proceedings.
Determining Your Standard Of Living During Your Marriage
When filing for a divorce in Seminole, each party is required to submit financial affidavits detailing the amount of property and assets they own as well as their debts and monthly expenses. These play a major role in determining your standard of living in a divorce.
You should not be shy in conveying the type of lifestyle you enjoyed during your marriage or in listing how much you routinely spent. This provides insight into the situation and often factors into other divorce-related matters. The following are among the expenses you will want to consider:
- Allowances for clothing, shoes, and accessories;
- Money spent at beauty salons, spas, and on manicures;
- Gym and health club memberships;
- Dining out, movies or theater, and other recreational expenses;
- Vacations and business travel;
- Professional services, such as accountants, financial advisors, and attorneys;
- Medical or cosmetic procedures;
- Any expense incurred as a regular or routine part of your life.
How Standard Of Living Impacts Divorce Proceedings
If you lived a lavish lifestyle during your marriage largely based on your spouse’s income, naturally you will need to make some adjustments after getting a divorce. However, the overall standard of living you enjoyed is a factor that should be raised by your attorney in divorce proceedings.
When filing for a divorce through the Pinellas County Court, marital property division and spousal support are two important issues. If you make significantly less than your spouse and your overall lifestyle is likely to change dramatically after your divorce, this should influence any final settlements or court orders issued. For example:
- You may be entitled to spousal support payments, either indefinitely or while you obtain the education or experience needed to reenter the workforce and make a decent income.
- If you will be staying home to provide for children from the marriage, this should factor into spousal and child support amounts.
- In property division, items such as the family home or vehicles may be awarded to you in a settlement, along with provisions that your spouse help in maintaining them;
- Marital property is divided on an equitable basis. This means that rather than splitting everything evenly, a judge will consider what is fair and reasonable for both spouses to maintain their former lifestyle.
Request A Consultation With Our Seminole Divorce Attorney
Getting a divorce does mean you will have to completely sacrifice your current lifestyle. To discuss how we can help in protecting your standard of living, reach out to The Reep Law Firm. Call or contact our Pinellas County divorce attorney online and request a confidential consultation today.
Resources:
flcourts.org/content/download/403038/file/902c.pdf
mypinellasclerk.org/Home/Family
