Financial Advice On Divorce: Reaching A Financial Settlement

Question:

Do you have any financial advice on divorce when it comes to dividing retirement and mutual funds?

My wife and I have reached a proposed agreement to divide the retirement accounts and that each of us will retain any stock, bond, or mutual fund that is held in one person’s name solely.

Can our proposed financial settlement overrule any state laws that require us to divide all the property we acquired during the marriage?

Answer:

This answer only includes general divorce help for men since I am only licensed to practice in Oklahoma and am thus unable to provide financial advice on divorce.

Generally, all assets acquired during your marriage are considered marital assets and are subject to an equitable division by the court as part of your divorce.

So technically, if you contributed money to the mutual funds earned during your marriage, regardless of whose name the account was held in, the money in the account and any gains or interest earned on that money are marital property and subject to division.

With that said, parties to a divorce are given significant leeway to make agreements outside of the guidelines provided by the law. If the parties can agree that certain marital assets are not to be divided, or are to be divided in a way which favors one party over the other, the court will usually not interfere.

From the information you’ve provided it would appear that you and your ex-wife have agreed to divide the retirement accounts and that each of you retains any stock, bond, or mutual fund in your name solely. Any financial settlement you have proposed should be closely examined in its entirety by a lawyer before a definitive position is taken.

Please understand that my opinions are based upon the limited facts that you provided to me. For a more in depth discussion and financial advice on divorce, I urge you to contact a divorce lawyer.

To set up an appointment with a Cordell and Cordell mens divorce attorney, including Christian D. Barnard, an Oklahoma Divorce Lawyer, please contact Cordell & Cordell.