Money and Divorce

We are by nature not a litigious or adversarial society so it is entirely beneficial that best outcomes occur when two people negotiate their own mutually acceptable agreement about financial matters: who will pay how much to assist the other parent with child-related costs, property settlement, and how cash and assets will be split up. Reaching an agreement through goodwill is best for all concerned, especially the children.

Property settlement is the process of dividing up both partners? property after separation. Both partners? property is included, regardless of whose name it is in, and includes:
?Real property e.g. land, houses and units
?Any other property which can be owned e.g. furniture, cars, money, shares, boats etc.
?Superannuation.

Amicable settlement is not always possible; sometimes the matter may go to court. The court will take into consideration the contributions of each partner in the marriage, including direct and indirect financial contributions (e.g. property brought into the marriage, money earned during the marriage, gifts and inheritances from families) as well as non-financial contributions such as contribution as a parent and homemaker and whether there are other financial resources e.g. superannuation or life insurance. And such factors as the length of the marriage and the period which the former couple had lived together before marriage and the earnings potential of each.

As noted earlier in, many couples don't have open and clear discussions about money. Many don't have any until they are facing divorce. One of the things that men and women have to keep in mind is that the character of money in marriage changes when divorce happens. When married, even though there is some background mental accounting the predominant metaphor is that of being one unit. When divorce happens all of the sudden it's the contractual and quantitative nature of money: how much did you contribute? How much was your salary? How much did I earn?

The Family Law Act applies across Australia and includes provisions to govern the division of property upon divorce. This now includes superannuation, which is now added to the pool of property. In the vast majority of cases it is the man who has the greater amount invested in super due to the greater amount of earnings men achieve. This can double the assets to be considered for splitting, especially for lower-income families. Effectively it's enabled women to access it by splitting. It has been reported that instead of accessing their husband's super at divorce, a large proportion of women are instead opting to trade off their entitlement to super for a higher share in the family home,

Many divorce lawyers advise that women should understand their financial position before the divorce settlement takes place, so they can make well-informed decisions during negotiations. In the majority of cases women receive a greater proportion of a couple's total assets. This may have mixed blessings as there is often the consequence of making decisions around assets and investments that are unfamiliar. An adviser can be a powerful and strategic ally.