Did you know that Florida ranks seventh-highest in the nation for divorce rate? Over 15 percent of couples in Florida couples are no longer together. As an asset protection attorney, I know that’s a scary statistic, but not as scary once you know that Florida is a state that abides by rules of equitable distribution for divorce.
Surely, high divorce rates aren’t anything new. We have been hearing about rising divorce rates across the country for years. They continue to rise and the idea of signing prenuptial agreements is becoming more common—with the risk of a short marriage comes the risk of losing gained assets.
In Florida, the rules of divorce are a little different than they may be portrayed in outside sources.
Florida is a No-Fault State
In Florida, divorces don’t work in favor of either party involved. Many times when we think of a divorce—especially one taking place due to one person in the marriage being unfaithful—we think of the “innocent” party as the victim. This would believe us to think that they will gain more from the divorce due to the circumstances, but this isn’t necessarily true.
Florida is a no-fault state, meaning there is no good guy and no bad guy. Both parties, regardless of the reasoning behind the split, and free of fault. Being that neither party has done anything wrong (in the eyes of the law, anyway), neither party gets a heftier chunk of what is to be split.
While equitable distribution is used to split assets in a divorce, it certainly doesn’t mean you are limited in what you should receive.
What is Equitable Distribution?
The term may make it sound as though your assets are split 50/50, but this isn’t the case. Equitable distribution simply means your assets should be divided fairly. Depending on the circumstances of your marriage and your finances, a judge will determine what fair should be.
The process for determining how to divide those assets will first to evaluate which assets are part of the marital estate. Any that are separate will not be included in the distribution as the court has no jurisdiction over those.
Once the marital estate has been found, equal distribution will begin to take place. If there is a surplus in the estate, the assets will be divided to where both parties get their fair share. But if there are debts, these will need to be divided equally as well.
Need an Asset Protection Attorney to Guide Your Divorce?
With a divorce lawyer by your side, you can be advised of the best approach regarding the distribution of your assets. Don’t let assets be divided unfairly in your divorce. Get in touch with me today and we can go through the proper steps for ensuring you get what you deserve.