Top 3 Rights You Don’t Know You Have During Divorce

The Top 3 Rights You Have During Divorce

Divorce is obviously a very emotional time for anyone. And with how little many people understand about the various intricacies of the legal system, this emotional time is made even more complicated. Thus it is made even more imperative to not try to do everything yourself and take some time to look into the proper resources before hurtling toward the court room. For that benefit, we’ve gathered together a the top 3 rights about divorce that everyone ought to know, but might not.

Equal Rights Down the Line

Times have changed from the days when the legal system differentiated people and their capabilities by sex. Now, both the wife and husband are entitled to equal property rights and equal child custody rights. With the former, most courts recognize both parties as having equal claim to any and all property they acquired during the marriage jointly. Therefore, the wife and husband each have a right to 50 percent each. With the latter, most courts no longer assume child custody to the wife as men now have equal standing in family courts.

Protection for Credit Accounts

Finances during a divorce can be very complicated, so it might be wise for you petition the court for a temporary order for special protection on any credit accounts in your name. The law will then prevent your spouse from using those accounts and running up debt, perhaps in retaliation.

Rights to Property Owned Before Marriage

In situations in which your spouse possessed property before the legal date of the marriage, you may still be entitled to a share of its equity value if mortgage payments were paid during the marriage or large improvements such as energy modernizations were made on the home during the marriage. In those cases, many courts will provide you with 50 percent of the increased value of the home.

But irregardless of who has possession of the house, someone must be given sole ownership of the house. With that fact stated, there are two ways to go about it: either one party has to buy out the outstanding share of the home from the other party or the house has to be sold for cash that can be appropriately distributed to both you and your spouse.

These top 3 rights are just a few of the main things you need to know when going through the legal proceedings of a divorce. Perhaps the biggest thing you need to know is this: Get a lawyer.

To speak to an experienced divorce attorney, call  562-431-4333 or contact Ann Thomson (Seal Beach family law attorney) today.