Divorce, QDRO’S and retirement income: 5 Things you must know

Divorce is not among the things that you wish for yourself. However, if circumstances lead you to one there are many things that you need to go through and the whole experience might affect you adversely. You may not be aware of many legal procedures and technicalities. Hence, it’s advisable that you get in touch one of the great divorce lawyers in your area. Having one of the top divorce lawyers by your side will give a fillip to your confidence and make you strong enough to go through the hell. 

Divorce process involves going through many formalities like the distribution of properties, child custody and visitation rights etc. You may be having a one of the best divorce lawyers by your side yet you should know basic things regarding the distribution of marital property in case of a divorce. They are as mentioned below:

1. Your retirement income is marital property. Hence, liable for distribution in case you are opting for separate ways. You have to share any income that was earned, accrued or vested during the period of your marriage.
2. In case your spouse dies before the retirement. The QDROS has to say there is a survivor benefit, without which you do not stand to receive any share out of the retirement benefits.
3. QDRO stands for Qualified Domestic Relations Order which is used to figure out the formula to find out how much each spouse will receive out of the say, retirement or pension benefits in case of a divorce.
4. Retirement income that comes from pension is known as deferred compensation. So, you only stand to benefit out of it if it was vested during the marriage. You are entitled to get only the share that was vested during the course of your marriage.
5. If QDRO violates the pension plan rules and you have a judge who has already signed the judgment of divorce and entitles you to a share in the pension, still you will be deprived of it because the QDRO doesn’t comply with what it says.

One should be aware of the things mentioned above; this lets you know your rights and what you deserve. You will not get cheated and justice will be done to you. However, your divorce attorney will be able to guide you wherever needed and make sure you are fairly dealt with.

Get more details about divorce lawyers here www.typeoflawyer.com, i this website, there are many different types of divorces and Skills required for a lawyer in order to practice divorce suit at the bar of law as well as Importance of the Lawyers dealing in the divorce suits in the modern age.

New York: Divorce & The Gift Tax

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New York: Divorce & The Gift Tax allows for any transfer of property including settlement agreement in a divorce to be subjected to gift tax. According to Federal Internal Revenue Code, divorce settlement agreement is liable for gift tax where one spouse transfers property to the other. However, this rule is a confusing one and tends to change frequently. Hence, it’s highly recommended to get yourself the services of one of the best NewYork divorce lawyers. The divorce process involves many legal procedures which general public are not that much aware of. So, having a divorce attorney will ease the pressure off you and prepare your case well. 

 Baring a few exceptions like the ones given below, one needs to pay gift tax while transferring property.

• A deductible transfer made between the couples during the year they got married notwithstanding if they divorced the same year
• Transfer of property when the settlement agreement is incorporated in the divorce decree
• A transfer made to the annual $10,000 exclusion made for waiver of pension rights, medical and educational expenses
• A transfer of property in exchange for support is not taxable under gift tax law
• A transfer of property where consideration is deemed given. This happens usually in case where the husband and wife have already decided the way they would like to handle their property. If the couple gets separated within two years, any transfer of property that was made during this time will not be taxable under gift tax law.

In case of transfer of property where an immediately enforceable right is relinquished

In case the spouse is not a US citizen, an exclusion of $133,000may apply. If the property transfer in divorce happens to be greater than this amount, the spouse who is making the transfer of property needs to pay gift tax on the excess value only. However, the bottom-line goes that any transfer of property or settlement agreement between the spouses is not considered taxable under the gift tax law unless the settlement agreement is incorporated into the divorce decree. What is confusing though is the law in New York that the divorce is not valid until the divorce decree has been signed by a judge. However, divorce lawyers posses enough knowledge and experience to make sure you are fairly dealt with and all your legal rights are protected. So, get yourself the services of one of the top divorce lawyers who will ease the pressure off you and take care of the legal issues involved in the divorce process.

 

Understanding the law regarding gift tax and the exceptions to it may sometimes be complicated. Hence, the couple should hire one of the great divorce lawyers in the city to be represented by in the court. He will understand your case and provide you with all necessary legal guidance so that all your rights are protected and justice is done.

How is Marital Debt Divided in Divorce?

Divorce, Separation, Marriage Termination; you may call it as you wish, but the ordeal is the same. You have to deal with many things like alimony, child custody, debt payment etc. In such a situation having a great divorce lawyers are a must.

One of the major concerns is the division of debt payment. Apart from the property acquisition in a marriage even debts are divided between the spouses. The divorce laws in this regards in all the states are almost the same with some differences in cases of community states. This is how debt is divided in a divorce:

Joint and several liability means both spouses are individually as well as jointly responsible for the debt as it is attributed to both. In some divorce cases the whole debt is incurred on one spouse and that spouse gets more share in the property as an equalization settlement.

Family debts are the expenses incurred for benefit of the family. Expenses like buying a house, child care, family vacations etc. are covered under the family debts. Both the spouses are responsible for repayment of these debts as both have derived the benefits from these expenses. These debts are a type of joint and several liability.

One spouse debts are the expenses incurred for the benefit of that particular spouse. A hobby or a vocational training etc., pursued by a spouse is of his benefit, so he has to repay for the same. However, top divorce lawyers in any community state will be the first to admit that all expenses during a marriage are a joint responsibility even if the beneficiary is just one spouse.

A divorce attorney is very essential for all settlements in regards of confusing debt payment. So hire the services of a good divorce lawyer if you want to forget concerns about division of debts in divorce.