Planning a Divorce? How to Prepare Ahead of Time

Most people know a divorce is imminent before they or their partner files. This time when you’re still in between and technically married is a good time to start preparing for the separation. Here are a few ways you can do this.

Save Money

It can be expensive to go through a divorce and it often means dropping from a dual income to a single one. You should open your own bank account and start saving up money in that account. You may find it tough to save, so you can consider selling off some of your personal belongings or having a certain amount of your salary directly deposited to the account. It’s also important not to leave money in a joint account.

Start Tracking Everything

If you plan to fight for custody, you should begin now to write down and document who does what with the children. Keep copies of anything that could be used as evidence, such as police reports or anything else that may prove the other parent unfit for sole custody. If there is any abuse in the family, be sure to document this, as well.

You should also track everything financially. How much money do you each bring in and who pays the bills, etc. This may affect the judge’s final decisions on your divorce.

Start Therapy

Divorce, even when amicable, is hard mentally and emotionally. It’s important that you have support as you go through this difficult time and a therapist can help guide you through the many emotions involved. As you proceed with the divorce, you should continue to see the therapist and work through all the emotional issues that are bound to crop up.

It may also be helpful to take your children to therapy sessions with a paediatric therapist, in order to help them process the changes, as well. It can be much harder on a child than on the adults and the child therapist can help with advice for making it a smoother transition for the entire family.

Find Legal Representation

Now is the perfect time to start talking to divorce attorneys and finding the one you feel will do the best job of representing you. The solicitor will be able to provide you with further advice on what you need to do in order to prepare. You’ll also find out what rights you have and how the judge is likely to rule, depending on your current financial status.

There are many factors involved in a divorce, but you can often ease some of the time and pain that are the result of the divorce by preparing ahead of time. Wherever you can be more efficient in the process, it’s worth doing it.