What Should Senior Citizens Know About Divorce?
Most people think that divorce happens only in young couples. However, “silver divorces” are incredibly common, especially in a state like Florida that has a large senior citizen population. Divorced is complicated for any couple, however it can be particularly tricky for senior citizens. One of the trickiest problems divorcing senior citizens face is how to determine spousal support and divide their assets.
Financially, divorcing as a senior citizen can have significant negative impacts upon your finances. Senior couples have long had intertwined finances due to their long term marriages, and they have jointly accumulated other assets and liabilities that can often be significant. An experience Florida divorce attorney is necessary to help senior citizen couples navigate and mitigate the financial impact of dividing and distributing these assets.
These assets can include large retirement accounts, pensions, real estate properties, and other personal property or assets. During a divorce, all of these will need to be itemized and assessed for whether they are marital or non-marital property. This also requires the services of an attorney skilled in Florida divorce law, as oftentimes divorcing couples have not fully disclosed all of their assets and banking information with each other. An attorney will need to know how to directly subpoena this information make sure the divorce is as accurate and fair as possible.
Another issue divorcing senior citizens often face is spousal alimony. Many times, one spouse stayed home to raise the children while another worked. Clients who are facing the reality of suddenly being required to pay alimony or, alternately, to provide for themselves for the first time in their lives absolutely need an experienced attorney by their side to help guide them through creating a realistic and reasonable expectation for what spousal support will look like.
Another big financial concern divorcing seniors will need to consider is their and their spouse’s medical needs. Alimony payments often account for health needs, and health and life insurance assets will also factor into how much support a spouse will pay or receive. A skilled Florida attorney can help couples figure out whether life and health insurance will be able to adequately provide for the needs of a partner or if additional support beyond that is needed.
Finally, divorcing seniors will need to factor in Social Security. Social Security benefits can be collected both by a spouse and their divorced partner if they were married for ten years. Further, if a spouse stayed out of the workforce to support their partner for a significant period of time they may be able to draw upon their divorced partner’s Social Security benefits. Again, an experienced Florida family law attorney can help you sort through the facts of your case.
Getting Divorced as a Senior Citizen?
If you are a senior citizen and are currently going through a divorce or are planning to get a divorce, the experienced divorce attorneys at Blair H. Chan, III, PLLC, can help. We have extensive experience making clients’ divorces as stress-free and quick as possible, and will help you assess all of your options. We also have experience working with senior citizen divorces and advising these kinds of clients about the unique challenges they face in their divorce. Contact us today to learn more.
