Worcester County Divorce Lawyer Assisting With Pension and Investment Division
You've worked hard all your life, wisely investing a portion of your income in your retirement fund, in real estate, in stocks and bonds and other investment vehicles. The idea of diminishing those investments and potentially jeopardizing your financial future by losing those assets in divorce, is a fearful and jarring prospect to many people.
In most cases, spouses have a valid financial interest in the property, investments, and even the retirement plans they share with the other spouse. But in some instances, all or a portion of an asset may, in fact, be separate property.
While family court has an interest in ensuring that each spouse receives a fair portion of the marital assets, you do not need to give more than what is fair to your former partner (unless you want to).
The Worcester divorce and retirement fund attorneys at Army & Army, L.L.C., have been helping clients through the challenges of complex property division in divorce since 1996. We represent a wide range of clients — men and women, business owners and business executives, stay-at-home spouses and military spouses.
If you are considering divorce or have been served with divorce papers, work with a lawyer who has experience with the division of retirement funds and investments in Massachusetts divorce cases. Contact the Grafton or Worcester attorneys at Army & Army, L.L.C., to arrange a free consultation.
Does the Asset Need to be Divided?
An asset such as a pension, IRA, stock or bond may be separate property or it may be marital property. Disclose the asset first and then work with your divorce attorney to determine whether it needs to be considered in the marital property division. (Failing to disclose an asset because you believe it should not be divided can backfire, damaging your integrity before the family court and causing the opposing attorney to dig more deeply into your financial affairs.)
Your former partner may have a financial interest in the entire asset, or just in the appreciated value of that asset during the time of your marriage. (In some instances — such as when the asset was part of a prenuptial agreement — the other partner may have no financial interest and it will be considered separate property.)
Divorce and Retirement Funds
When properly valuing a party's financial interest in a pension division, 401(k) or IRA division, an attorney will look at the value of the account prior to marriage and the contributions and appreciation in value during the marriage. The divorce attorney will then need to investigate the proper method for achieving the distribution.
- In some cases, a pension cannot be split until the person who holds the pension reaches retirement age.
- Some retirement funds can only be divided using a Qualified Domestic Relations Order (QDRO), a complex document that must be correctly prepared.
- If the pension holder is a member of the military, there are procedures for dividing a military pension.
Investment Division
Investments can also pose challenges to easy division.
- Did you own the investment prior to marriage or receive it as a separate inheritance? What was the value when you received it? What was the value when the marriage began? What is the value at this time?
- Did you continue to make contributions during your marriage and whose income was contributed?
- Will the distribution of this asset create a tax liability? (How should that liability be offset in the property settlement agreement?)
These and other questions will be considered in depth by your Massachusetts pension and investment division lawyer at Army & Army, L.L.C. Contact our law firm online or by calling 888-339-4206.
