PartWise | Common Questions

Common Questions

What you Need to Know

Find answers to specific questions that often come up as you navigate divorce.

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Financial

Cash Flow

Are there cost of living increases to child support?

Cash Flow

Can spousal support be “permanent”?

Parenting

How should we handle situations where our children are struggling to adjust to a new significant other in one of our lives?

Budgeting

Cash Flow

Should our budgets moving into separate homes add up to our historical budget in one home?

Parenting

In the event of a sick day, what measures can we put in place to ensure our child receives adequate care and attention, considering both parents may have differing work schedules or responsibilities?

Retirement

Post Divorce

Property Division

What happens if my ex-spouse refuses to cooperate with the QDRO process?

Parenting

Cash Flow

What role does communication play in the successful implementation of different methods for sharing children's expenses after divorce?

Asset Allocation

Property Division

Why is the vesting schedule important when evaluating stock options in divorce?

Budgeting

Cash Flow

We lived in a $500,000 house during our marriage, do I have a right to another house of that same price moving forward?

Parenting

If our child's extracurricular activities require frequent travel or overnight stays, how should we coordinate these plans to ensure both parents are comfortable and involved?

Parenting

How can we handle transportation logistics if one parent lives significantly farther away from the child’s school or extracurricular activities?

Parenting

I would like our child to participate in an activity that only occurs on my parenting time – do I need my co-parent’s agreement?

Parenting

My family doesn’t live in my state, now that I am divorced, can I move with my children to be close to my family?

Parenting

How do divorced parents typically handle children’s birthdays?

Asset Allocation

Property Division

How is my disability insurance policy addressed in divorce?

Process

Cash Flow

If I buy out spousal support in a lump sum and my spouse gets married, can I get some of the lump sum back?

Process

Cash Flow

What happens if one party fails to fulfill their obligations under a direct payment agreement?

Process

Cash Flow

Can a lump sum buyout agreement be modified in the future?

Financial

Cash Flow

I want to retire but have a spousal support obligation, what should I do?

Parenting

My children are not even in school, how can we come up with a parenting plan now for 12 or more years?

Parenting

How can I discuss the introduction of my new significant other with my co-parent to ensure transparency and cooperation?

Post Divorce

Process & Other Professionals

What professionals should I contact for post-decree financial issues?

Parenting

When one parent moves a greater distance away from the other, does the relocated parent have an obligation to facilitate and pay for additional transportation?

Asset Allocation

Property Division

Can we split our credit card debts in half?

Process

Parenting

My state doesn’t use the term “visitation” – so what is it called when my ex has time with the children?

Asset Allocation

Property Division

What are some potential challenges with dividing employee incentives like stock options and RSUs in divorce?

Property Division

Post Divorce

Can we use a private contract (like a property settlement note) to handle the division of real estate equity?

Attorney

Getting Started

Attorneys

What if my attorney isn’t responding to me or listening to me?

Parenting

How do we handle situations where one parent wants to discontinue an activity that the other parent and/or child enjoy and find beneficial?

Parenting

How can parents collaboratively develop a new parenting schedule that accommodates the needs of both parents and the children after a relocation?

Retirement

Post Divorce

Property Division

Are there any fees associated with the QDRO process?

Financial

Cash Flow

How are direct payment arrangements established in a divorce?

Asset Allocation

Property Division

How should I think through property division?

Legal

Property Division

We never combined any of our assets, do we still have to share them in divorce?

Process

Getting Started

Process & Other Professionals

Do I have to start over if the collaborative process is terminated?

Parenting

What steps can we take to make the introduction of a new significant other as smooth and positive as possible for our children?

Property Division

Post Divorce

How can a quit claim deed affect my financial future if I transfer my interest in the property to my ex-spouse?

Attorney

Getting Started

Attorneys

Why would an attorney not meet with me for a consult?

Process

Getting Started

Process & Other Professionals

What do I do if my spouse and I cannot agree on a process?

Cash Flow

Do I have to document what I spend my child support payment on?

Getting Started

Readiness

What is discernment counseling?

Professionals

Process & Other Professionals

Getting Started

Who pays for non-lawyer divorce professionals?

Parenting

When do holidays start/end in a co-parenting schedule?

Process

Cash Flow

Our parenting time schedule recently changed, do we have to update child support?

Parenting

We don’t have travel or vacation time built into our parenting plan, can I plan a vacation with the children?

Parenting

What should we do if one parent repeatedly fails to support or attend the child's extracurricular activities, causing the child to feel disappointed or unsupported?

Getting Started

Readiness

What if my spouse doesn’t want a divorce?

Parenting

We have a week on/week off parenting schedule, but it’s too long to be away – is there anything I can do?

Legal

Property Division

Is my state a community property state?

Attorney

Getting Started

Attorneys

Can one attorney represent both of us?

Parenting

What do we do if both parents are unavailable when our child gets sick?

Process

Getting Started

Process & Other Professionals

How do I find a mediator if my spouse and I don’t agree?

Legal

Parenting

How do custody labels impact the way we make decisions about childcare?

Retirement

Property Division

What about a loan against my retirement?

Post Divorce

What if my ex-spouse isn’t following the divorce decree?

Asset Allocation

Property Division

What are Restricted Stock Units (RSUs) and how do they differ from stock options?

Financial

Cash Flow

What are some potential risks or downsides of accepting a lump sum buyout?

Financial

Cash Flow

How can spouses ensure a fair and equitable lump sum buyout agreement?

Cash Flow

What if my expenses change from my estimates?

Parenting

I want to introduce my child to my new significant other, why should I wait?

Budgeting

Cash Flow

How does the standard of living during the marriage impact the cash flow analysis?

Retirement

Property Division

If my spouse has multiple retirement accounts, how are these divided?

Parenting

What tools or platforms can we use to facilitate effective and documented communication about the children’s schedules, health, and educational needs?

Asset Allocation

Property Division

Are our wedding rings marital or joint assets?

Parenting

What are the benefits and potential drawbacks of jurisdictions that do not use custody labels but instead focus on comprehensive parenting plans?

Attorney

Getting Started

Attorneys

What is the difference between a solo attorney and an attorney at a firm?

Financial

Cash Flow

How can direct payment arrangements affect taxes in a divorce?

Financial

Cash Flow

What types of expenses can be paid directly as part of support in a divorce?

Asset Allocation

Property Division

If we have already divided our personal property and furnished separate households, do we have to go through all personal use assets?

Retirement

Post Divorce

Property Division

Can retirement benefits be adjusted after the QDRO is implemented if there are errors or changes?

Parenting

What are some effective ways to maintain the non-relocating parent's involvement in the children’s lives after a move?

Legal

Property Division

Is my state an equitable division state?

Retirement

Property Division

Why do I have to share retirement when I am the one that earned it all?

Parenting

How do divorced parents typically handle Mother’s Day and/or Father’s Day?

Asset Allocation

Post Divorce

Property Division

How should we handle jointly owned vehicles in the divorce?

Parenting

How can we ensure that both parents are informed about the children’s medical needs and treatments?

Attorney

Getting Started

Attorneys

Do attorneys accept credit card payments?

Asset Allocation

Process & Other Professionals

Property Division

How do I know if my spouse is hiding money?

Process

Getting Started

Process & Other Professionals

What is a “kitchen table” divorce?

Parenting

If one parent wants the children to participate in a specific religious activity and the other does not, how can this be resolved?

Parenting

If we agree to change our parenting time schedule, do we have to notify anyone or can we just implement the change ourselves?

Asset Allocation

Property Division

Where do I find the "legal description" of real property or real estate?

Retirement

Property Division

What does "tax-effecting" retirement mean?

Retirement

Property Division

Do I have to share my retirement with my spouse if I earned it all myself?

Legal

Cash Flow

Is spousal support the same as child support?

Parenting

My co-parent is taking the children out of town for a week on an agreed-upon vacation, should we make up my missed time when they return?

Parenting

Can we each have different childcare providers on our separate parenting time?

Parenting

How can we manage joint decision-making if one parent is more knowledgeable about a specific area, like a child’s special education needs?

Asset Allocation

Property Division

How is a signing bonus typically treated in a divorce settlement?

Post Divorce

How do I change my name on my professional licenses and certifications?

Budgeting

Cash Flow

Do we need a budget if we both have sufficient income to meet our reasonable need?

Cash Flow

How do I calculate my income if I am paid hourly?

Post Divorce

Property Division

Can the property division be changed after the divorce is finalized?

Retirement

Property Division

Post Divorce

Can I cash out retirement once transferred to me from a qualified retirement plan instead of setting up a separate account?

Financial

Property Division

How do I value a service business, like consulting, coaching or a legal practice?

Parenting

How can we ensure that our children understand and respect the rules and expectations set by both parents when they might be slightly different in each household?

Parenting

Can I prevent the other parent from smoking around our children?

Professionals

Process & Other Professionals

Is arbitration better than going to court?

Property Division

Process & Other Professionals

What kind of language should be in the decree regarding the house or mortgage?

Financial

Property Division