Divorce at Financial Rock Bottom
Disagreements over financial values are almost an inevitable part of marriage. The only ways to avoid them are to keep your finances almost entirely separate from your spouse’s finances, or else to prioritize matching financial values above everything else; if you choose the section option, you might end up with a marriage where you and your spouse are always on the same page about money, even if you have little else in common. As trapped and resentful as you might feel being married to someone whose spending habits, work ethic, and interpersonal relationships keep you stuck in a cycle of debt and scrambling to avoid financial catastrophe, getting divorced will probably put you in an even worse financial situation, at least temporarily. A recent article on the Moneywise website tells of a woman who filed for divorce after her husband racked up huge debts by collecting Pokemon cards. It was only when the wife lost her job that she found out that her husband had drained the couple’s savings and maxed out their credit card. When she first met with her divorce lawyer, she had only three dollars in her bank account. If you have decided to file for divorce, but you have no money, contact a Mississauga family lawyer.
Finalize Your Divorce First, and Then Rebuild Financially
From a legal perspective, divorce means separating your finances. When you file for divorce, you must present to the court accurate statements about each spouse’s income, separate property, and separate debts, as well as the couple’s marital property and debts. During divorce mediation, both spouses discuss the fairest way to divide the marital property and debts. Sometimes, it is a straightforward matter; for example, it only makes sense for each spouse to maintain responsibility for his or her respective car loan. If you and your spouse are so broke that you cannot afford divorce lawyers, you can probably agree during mediation about which of you keeps which debts. Things are more complicated if you own your house and the only path forward is to sell the house and divide the proceeds, because selling a house is never a quick process.
If you emerge from your divorce with almost no income or assets and with mountains of debt that you cannot pay, you can seek debt relief after your divorce becomes final. You can talk about those plans with your family lawyer even before you file the divorce petition. If you have a place to stay, even if it is with relatives, and you have a job, even if it is one with a modest income, things will eventually get better. You may or may not ever be friends with your ex-spouse again, but at least your money conflicts with your ex can no longer take up the bulk of your mental energy.
Contact Zagazeta Garcia LLP About Divorce After a Financial Catastrophe
A family lawyer can help you if your finances are so bad that you cannot imagine them getting worse. Contact Zagazeta Garcia LLP in Mississauga, Ontario to discuss your case.
Source:
msn.com/en-us/money/personalfinance/i-ve-filed-for-divorce-with-just-3-in-my-account-after-my-husband-racked-up-40k-in-debt-on-pokemon-cards-how-can-i-separate-our-finances-for-good/ar-AA29cxj0?ocid=msedgntp&pc=ACTS&cvid=6a6e74a7ff04489ea37ba3babedf361b&ei=16
