If you and your spouse share a large estate, you likely have concerns about how divorce will impact your assets. During a contested divorce, a judge with limited time and knowledge of your family’s finances may have to make crucial decisions about how to divide and distribute marital property.
However, litigation is far from your only choice. If you and your spouse want to minimize legal expenses while maintaining control over your financial choices, an uncontested divorce may be the better option.
1. Time to fully assess assets
In addition to your home and other real estate, you and your spouse may have complicated assets, such as investment accounts or business holdings. Avoiding the pressures of an impending trial could give you the time and the privacy to properly inventory and value shared assets before you divide them.
2. A chance to negotiate on even terms
It can be difficult to plan for the future when you do not have control over it. During an uncontested divorce, you and your spouse can feel more confident about negotiating for your fair share because you know that the final decision is still in your hands.
3. The opportunity to find creative solutions
If your divorce goes to court, the law will limit the ways in which a judge can divide and distribute property. That could mean liquidating or splitting up assets that you would rather not. Choosing to negotiate instead may allow your and future ex to find creative ways to separate your finances without sacrificing the value of shared assets.
Choosing an uncontested divorce does not mean you have to forego legal resources. If you and your spouse want to avoid court but need guidance, divorce mediation can help you to negotiate an agreement that is both fair and financially smart.
