A challenging aspect of ending your marriage is discussing divorce with your 3-year-old child, according to the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. Talking to your young child about divorce requires preparation and the use of appropriate language understood by your youngster. Explaining divorce requires cooperation between you and your spouse and a reasonable attempt to set aside your differences for the sake of your child, at least during the conversation itself.

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Thursday, the Florida Senate passed alimony reform legislation (SB 718) by a 29-11 margin. The Senate sent a strong message to Floridians that current alimony laws will change. If proponents succeed in the House next week, permanent alimony will be harder, if not impossible, for spouses in long-term marriages to get.

The bill allows existing agreements to be modified to reflect the new law.

The ramifications of such a drastic move would be far reaching for everyone — payers, alimony recipients, children of divorced parents. Although there have surely been abuses under current law, rather than reform, the bill is a complete overhaul of a system that works — albeit not perfectly. Many divorces are handled through mediation, which is now required by law.

Divorcing couples are also opting for collaborative divorces in an effort to avoid a court battle, exert more control over the process and craft their own settlements. Click here to find out how the Divorce Without War® approach can work for you.

Written as a remedy for a minority of men and women, the bill leaves the majority of alimony recipients at risk.

Click here to continue reading the original article from The Miami Herald.

You can divorce your spouse, but unless you take extra steps to protect yourself, ditching debt from jointly held cards is more difficult. Credit card companies aren’t bound by divorce decrees, so they can go after you for jointly incurred debt if your former spouse doesn’t pay.

This is why divorce attorneys, financial planners and credit counselors recommend that you leave your marriage with no joint debt. By either paying off the joint cards together or dividing up the debt on joint cards and transferring it to cards in each partner’s name, the goal is to remove your liability for your partner’s debts. It’s also important to inventory your wallet and make sure all joint credit cards are canceled during the divorce process.

The consequences of going into your newly single life with jointly held debt are potentially painful: Should your ex file for bankruptcy or just not pay what he or she is supposed to pay, your creditors can go after you for the full amount of the debt, plus interest and penalties. You can include provisions in the divorce agreement to force your ex to pay up, but going back to court is expensive and time-consuming.

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If you are going through a divorce or legal separation and you or your spouse own retirement plan assets, you will most likely be required to share these assets. In some cases, the assets may be awarded to one party. Whether you are giving up the assets or receiving them, you need to understand the rules that govern the asset division. Proper handling is critical in ensuring that the right party is responsible for paying applicable taxes. The type of retirement plan – that is, whether it is an IRA or qualified plan – determines the rules that apply.

Click here for an overview of these rules from investopedia.com.

Divorce Without War® is pleased to announce the opening of a new North Tampa location in Florida. Founded in 1992, Divorce Without War® offers peaceful, affordable alternatives for individuals and couples facing transition and divorce. The North Tampa location is owned by Derek S. Lucas, an experienced attorney with extensive knowledge of family law.

Divorce Without War® attorneys are highly trained mediators. With this expertise, they guide individuals and couples through the divorce process, facilitating fair, legally sound agreements, and preparing all necessary legal documents. All of this occurs in a confidential, supportive and neutral setting.

“For most people, the prospect of dissolving a marriage is perhaps the most traumatic experience of their lives. Fear, hostility, guilt, depression, anger and insecurity are among the range of emotions commonly experienced by people facing divorce. They are vulnerable to anyone who can offer them assurances of victory, and are often receptive to suggestions that reinforce hostility toward their spouse,” said Derek S. Lucas, Owner of Divorce Without War® North Tampa office. “That’s where we come in. Our vision at Divorce Without War® is to help couples achieve a peaceful, low-cost, and legally smart divorce, while maintaining positive relationships, dignity and emotional wellness for themselves, their family and loved ones.”

Divorce Without War® recognizes the importance of each participant’s concerns, best interests, needs and priorities. Couples are provided with an appropriate, private, out-of-court setting to discuss options and potential next steps.  This is the best opportunity for a couple to dictate the terms of their own divorce with sound legal guidance from one experienced attorney acting as a mediator. Divorce Without War® fees are a fraction of the cost to hire two attorneys to commence and defend a lawsuit. The emotional and financial well-being of the couple and the couple’s family are top priorities to Divorce Without War®.

Owner Derek S. Lucas is an experienced attorney with extensive knowledge of family law. He earned his degree from Florida Agricultural & Mechanical University College of Law in Orlando, FL in 2007, and became a law clerk for Florida’s Attorney General’s Office. Upon being admitted to the Florida Bar, he accepted a position as an Assistant Attorney General in the Child Support Enforcement Section, where he was responsible for overseeing hundreds of child support cases. Mr. Lucas then served as an Associate Attorney in a private family practice law firm for several years, where he was involved in numerous complex, high-asset divorce matters, with vast legal issues in many respects, including modification issues, child support, alimony, relocation challenges and more.

The new Divorce Without War® office is located at 13920 N. Dale Mabry Hwy., Suite #2, in Tampa, Florida. To learn more about Divorce Without War® North Tampa, call 813-527-0343.

Divorce creates new challenges for parents, but there are many strategies that will help you both adjust to the challenge of single parenting.

For whatever reason you and your spouse divorced, there are bound to be concerns about the effect on your children. Whether they were clued in or were completely shocked by their parents’ divorce, every child is affected in his or her own way. There are many helpful strategies to minimize the damage of divorce on children and to maintain peace in the family and yes, it is still a family, even if the parents live apart.

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