Spartanburg Divorce Lawyer & Attorney : Stevens-MacPhail Law Firm : South Carolina Family Law Serving Columbia, Charleston, Greenville, Hilton Head Island

The following tips can help make your divorce case easier, less stressful, and less expensive:

1. Locate, organize and copy all financial records. Make one copy for yourself and a second for your attorney. Save the originals.
2. Close all joint bank and brokerage accounts. If that’s not possible, freeze access to the accounts.
3. Close all joint credit accounts. Open new accounts in your own name.
4. Maintain a written record of all expenses run up during the separation. This also includes joint expenses such as bills paid and home improvements or auto maintenance.
5. Establish your net worth. Keep a record of all income during the separation. Save pay stubs, bank and brokerage statements.
6. The forced sale of stock or other investments is likely to have tax implications. Consult your financial planner as needed.
7. Before the settlement conference, make a list of what you seek right down to household goods.
8. If there’s something you know your soon-to-be ex wants in the property settlement, don’t give it away in a hopeless effort to establish goodwill. Use it as a bargaining chip and trade it for something you want.
9. Settle out of court. This will cut legal costs and ease your jangled nerves.

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Cheating spouses now have one more way to get caught in their philandering.  Electronic toll collection systems are emerging as a powerful means of proving infidelity.  Attorneys can obtain records from these services and use that information to prove that a spouse was not where he/she claimed to be. 

The Associated Press reports that agencies in seven of the twelve states surveyed indicated that they would provide electronic toll information in response to court orders in criminal and civil cases, including divorces.  Even if the state agency refuses to provide the information, it can frequently be obtained from the other spouse through the normal discovery process.

Source:  "Toll Records Trip Up Philanderers" by Chris Newmarker, published at The Huffington Post.

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Question:  I decided a while ago that being married is just not for me anymore.  When I told my husband about my feelings, he moved into the guest room in our house, and we have now been sleeping in separate bedrooms for about six months.  I read that there is a waiting period in South Carolina for a no-fault divorce.  If we have been living in separate bedrooms and not having sex, will the Court count these last six months toward the required waiting period?
 
Answer:  In South Carolina, you must live apart for over one year in order to get a “no fault” divorce.  Living apart means that you must live in separate residences under different roofs.  In other words, living in separate bedrooms in the same house does NOT count toward the one year requirement.  

If you have already decided that you do not want to be married anymore, then you should act to protect yourself and your interests.  If any of the following factors apply, you should consult an experienced family law attorney to discuss whether you will benefit from obtaining a legal separation:

• You have any significant assets, including real estate, retirement accounts, a business, investments, etc.;
• You have any minor children with your spouse;
• Your spouse has committed a fault ground for divorce (adultery, physical abuse, alcohol/drug abuse, etc.);
• You suspect that your spouse’s financial situation may worsen in the near future; or
•  You suspect that your spouse may dispose of marital assets or incur additional debt in the near future.

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If a party cannot prove any of the five divorce grounds, he/she may still seek a legal separation, which is called a "Decree of Separate Maintenance" in South Carolina.  In an action for separate maintenance, the Court can still address many issues on a permanent basis, such as asset/debt distribution, alimony and spousal support, child custody, child support, and visitation, etc.  However, the key difference between a divorce and a legal separation is that the parties are still married, but their relationship with is legally and specifically defined.

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Before a party may file an action for divorce or separation, at least one of the parties must have been a resident of South Carolina for more than one year, or both spouses must have resided in South Carolina for at least three months.

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