Ultimate Divorce Checklist

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  • Planning

    • Couples counseling

    • Therapy

    • Mind mapping post-divorce life

    • Financial advisor

    • Divorce coach

  • Process Choice

    • No Court

      • Negotiated Agreement

      • Mediation

      • Collaborative Divorce

      • Arbitration

    • Court

      • What is your budget (time, energy, emotion, money)?

  • Support

    • Prepare a monthly cash flow budget, including income and expenses

    • Determine child support

      • 21 or later if a child is under a disability

    • Determine spousal maintenance, including amount and duration

      • Is there a waiver of maintenance in a pre- or postnuptial agreement exist?

    • Calculate pro-rata obligations for add-on expenses

      • Activities

      • Unreimbursed Medical

      • Education

        • 529 accounts for your children's education

        • Private or Public

    • Life Insurance to cover future obligations

  • Custody

    • Parenting Plan

      • School evenings, weeknights, and weekends

      • Three-day weekends

      • School recesses (Winter and Spring)

      • Summer vacations

      • Holiday celebrations

      • Birthdays of parents/children

      • Mothers'/Fathers' Day

      • Cell phone/e-mail/texting access to the children

      • Transportation between households

      • Travel away from home with the children

      • Etiquette (rules) for visits, cancellations

      • Changes to the schedule at future times

    • Decision Making

      • Parents must agree, consult, or take sole authority for decisions on:

        • Education

        • Extracurricular/weekend activities

        • Non-emergency or elective medical care

        • Religious upbringing

        • Childcare providers

    • Sharing Information

      • Ways of exchanging information about the children

      • Accessing documents from schools, activities, doctors, dentists, therapists, and other third parties

    • Relocation

      • Rules or adjustments for change of children‘s residence

    • Guardianship

      • In the case of both parents passing away

    • Significant Others

      • Connections with grandparents and other relatives

      • Introducing new partners

  • ASSETS AND LIABILITIES DIVISION

    • Do pre- or postnuptial agreements exist?

    • Make a marital estate statement by compiling a list of assets and liabilities.

    • Are there any assets to value?

      • Business

      • Personal property

      • Earning capacity of a spouse to identify the necessity of spousal maintenance or child support

    • Is there separate property?

      • Pre-marital property

      • Gifts

      • Inheritances

      • Agreements that define separate property

    • Debts

      • Mortgages

      • Credit Cards

      • Student Loans

    • Tax implications

  • Attorney Fees

    • Who will cover legal fees?