How to Prepare for Divorce When You’re Not the Breadwinner

No matter who you are, ending a marriage comes with an array of anxieties, from logistical to emotional. For many people, leaving a marriage is all the more difficult when there is a significant difference in income between yourself and your partner. 

According to a recent American Community Survey, 63 percent of young women are earning less than their husbands. Sadly, this means that many people feel trapped in unhappy or unhealthy marriages because they don’t have the financial means to walk away. 

In this article, Lexington KY lawyers share practical ways to help you prepare for financial independence. That way, if you ever find yourself in that situation, money won’t be the reason you stay somewhere you shouldn’t.

Understanding Your Financial Picture

The first step is to get a lay of the land for your own finances. This is good advice for anyone, regardless of whether you are planning to leave a marriage or not. Gather and organize all your bank statements, tax returns, pay stubs, debt records, receipts, or other documentation that shows money moving in or out of accounts under your name. 

Many Lexington Kentucky law firms may refer to this as “marshalling” your assets, which is a fancy name for getting your ducks in a row. Using this information, make an initial, informal list of your marital assets and liabilities.

This can be as simple as jotting them down on paper or as comprehensive as using your financial records to create a detailed spreadsheet. The point is to know where you stand before you make any moves.

Start Budgeting For Independence

Once you’ve completed step one, this process becomes much more straightforward. Knowing your portion of the debts, monthly payments, and other expenditures makes it much easier to sort out what you will still be liable for once you are separated from your partner.

Your budget at this stage should focus on financially supporting yourself for the long-term, not just the short. While you may be entitled to some form of maintenance, or “alimony” as it is commonly called, this is not a certainty under Kentucky law. 

However, it is important to consider the non-economic ways that you have contributed to the relationship. You might have supported your spouse while they earned a degree or taken time off work, temporarily or permanently, to raise your children. Those contributions are just as valuable.

In situations like this, you may be entitled to rehabilitative maintenance. This means you could receive temporary payments from your future ex-spouse while you attempt to re-enter the workforce. As you might expect, factors such as your age, education, work experience, and the local job market can all be taken into account as well.

In the end, you may be solely responsible for meeting your own financial needs without support from your soon-to-be ex-spouse. That is why finding a trusted Lexington Kentucky law firm to represent you is so important.

Know Your Legal Rights

Some legal issues arise in every divorce case in the state of Kentucky, while others apply only in certain situations. This again highlights the importance of researching Lexington Kentucky law firms to find an attorney who can handle your case and address the issues that matter most. 

Issues may arise that involve child custody, division of your assets, and allocating you debts between you and your soon-to-be ex. It is important to remember that the financial decisions you make today can have lasting effects if you later go through a divorce.

Any purchases you make while married will likely need to be split between you and your spouse upon divorce. However, a good way to mitigate the financial anguish you would experience during divorce is to begin separating out your assets now. This will make it easier for you or your future attorney to “trace” the assets or debts to their proper owner. This is also why it is important to keep any receipts you may have, whenever possible.

Kentucky law follows a system known as “equitable distribution,” which means that a court will not just split every asset down the middle and be done with the case. Instead, the court considers what division would be fair under the circumstances.

Many factors determine what is considered “fair” in any given case, so the court’s decision goes far beyond simply adding up dollars and cents. This is where having the right Lexington KY lawyers on your side can make a difference. The right attorney will know which factors carry the most weight and can help you share your story in the best way.

The concept of “equitable distribution” can be to your advantage as the lower-earning spouse, since your contributions to the household may have added value in non-financial ways. If you have children, for example, you may have spent more time taking care of them than the higher-earning spouse.

Research shows that married women perform more housework than divorced, never-married, and unmarried cohabiting mothers. At the same time, the rate of stay-at-home fathers has steadily increased over the last 30 years. 

More parents are devoting significant time to raising and caring for their children, which is not likely to be reflected as a positive financial decision. The stay-at-home parent is the poster child for why courts will look to fairness rather than equality when dividing assets in a divorce.

Work with Trusted Lexington Kentucky Law Firms

Many Lexington KY lawyers will offer to walk you through the motions for dissolution of a marriage. However, among the Lexington Kentucky law firms practicing in this space, Embry Merritt Womack & Nance, PLLC will provide you with a team of attorneys specialized in protecting financially dependent spouses. 

At EMWN Law we have Lexington KY lawyers who will work with you from the time you decide to leave to ensure your assets are protected for the future. Our team of attorneys are uniquely able to assist you in leaving your marriage, and in setting up your estate and assets to ensure you keep what is yours.

Embry Merritt Womack & Nance is deeply rooted in the community and stands out as one of the top Lexington Kentucky law firms. We will use our connections to ensure you can leave your marriage with minimal financial penalty. These connections include recommendations of financial advisors who can assist you with long-term planning once your initial dissolution litigation has ended. 

Although the divorce process can take a year or longer to complete, it is important to remember that if children are involved, the court will maintain an interest in the case until they reach the age of 18.

This means that whichever Lexington Kentucky law firms you choose to represent you in your divorce, they could be guiding you for almost two decades into the future. This is why it is important to choose wisely. 

EMWN Law is here to provide the knowledgeable, compassionate representation you need. Let’s start a conversation today.

Disclaimer

This article is provided for general informational purposes only and does not constitute legal, tax, or financial advice. Reading this post or contacting Embry Merritt Womack & Nance, PLLC through this website does not create an attorney–client relationship. You should consult directly with an attorney regarding your specific situation before taking or refraining from any action based on this information.