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After a long marriage, divorce touches nearly everything you’ve built together, retirement accounts, pensions, real estate, investments, and the income you’ve planned your later years around.
There’s real weight to sorting through decades of shared finances, and less time to recover if a settlement leaves something unprotected.
What makes later-life divorce complicated usually isn’t a lack of clarity about what you want. It’s that dividing retirement accounts, long-held property, and support obligations built up over decades involves rules that are easy to get wrong and hard to undo once a judgment is signed.
S. Roger Rombro has practiced family law since 1973, and both name partners at Rombro & Manley LLP are Certified Family Law Specialists, a certification only a small share of California attorneys hold. We bring that experience to the financial issues that often make senior divorce more complex, including retirement division, spousal support, and property accumulated over a marriage of decades.
Contact us to talk through what you own, what you may be entitled to, and what your options look like from there.
A senior divorce often requires a closer look at assets and income than a shorter marriage, and it can raise several legal issues at the same time rather than one at a time. We help clients address the financial and family law issues that can shape their lives after the judgment.
These issues are often connected, and a decision made in one area can affect the outcome in another. That is why an experienced Torrance family law attorney looks at the full financial picture before recommending how to approach a settlement.
The financial consequences of divorce can look very different at 55 or 65 than they do at 35. Retirement may be approaching or already underway. There may be fewer working years available to replace savings or rebuild income. A home may represent both significant equity and the place where you have lived for decades.
Spousal support can also remain an important issue after a long marriage. Under California Family Code Section 4336, a marriage lasting 10 years or more is generally considered a marriage of long duration. In those cases, the court retains jurisdiction over spousal support unless the parties agree otherwise or the court makes a different order.
That does not mean support automatically continues for life. It means the court may retain the ability to address support without a predetermined termination date. The income, assets, earning capacity, needs, and other circumstances of both spouses still matter.
A settlement made today can affect your financial security well into retirement. That makes it important to understand the numbers before agreeing to divide property or resolve support.
Retirement benefits earned during marriage are generally subject to California’s community property rules. That can include 401(k)s, pensions, CalPERS and CalSTRS benefits, and other employer-sponsored retirement plans.
Dividing those benefits requires more than identifying an account balance. The community and separate property portions may need to be determined, and the division method depends on the type of plan. Some plans require a Qualified Domestic Relations Order or another specialized order before benefits can be divided.
Pensions can require additional analysis because the value may depend on years of service, compensation, retirement age, and the portion earned during marriage. A retirement benefit that looks straightforward on a statement may require a more detailed calculation before you know what it is worth to each spouse.
We can review the retirement benefits involved in your case and work through the orders and plan requirements needed to carry out the division. The goal is to make sure the final agreement reflects the actual value and nature of the benefits being divided.
The family home can be one of the most difficult assets to address in a senior divorce. It may have substantial equity, but its value is not the only consideration.
Mortgage payments, taxes, maintenance, other assets, and each spouse’s ability to maintain the property after divorce can all affect whether keeping the home makes financial sense.
Other property may require the same level of attention. Investment accounts, businesses, rental property, stock, and other assets can have different values and tax consequences.
Property that was acquired before marriage or received through inheritance may also raise separate property issues.
We look at the property as part of the larger financial picture rather than treating each asset as an isolated number. That can help you understand what a proposed division actually means for your life after divorce.
Spousal support can become a central issue when one spouse has been financially dependent on the other for many years. California courts consider a range of factors when determining support, including each spouse’s income, earning capacity, needs, assets, and the marital standard of living.
The length of the marriage also matters. For marriages of long duration, the court may retain jurisdiction over support for an extended period. That makes the terms of a support order particularly important when retirement or a reduction in work income is approaching.
A support agreement should account for more than the income available today. Retirement plans, changes in employment, health-related changes, and other foreseeable financial circumstances can affect what happens later.
Torrance family law cases are generally heard at the Torrance Courthouse in the Southwest District of Los Angeles County Superior Court. The courthouse is located at 825 Maple Avenue in Torrance.
You are not required to hire an attorney. A long-term marriage can, however, involve retirement benefits, real estate, investments, support, and other financial issues that are difficult to evaluate without legal guidance.
The consequences of an agreement can continue long after the divorce is finalized. Legal review can help identify issues that may not be obvious when you are focused on reaching an agreement quickly.
If you receive health insurance through your spouse’s employer, your coverage may end when you are no longer eligible as a dependent spouse. Options such as COBRA or an individual health plan may be available depending on your circumstances.
Health insurance costs should be considered when evaluating the financial terms of a settlement, particularly when one spouse is nearing retirement.
There is no fixed cost for a senior divorce. Fees depend on the issues involved, how much property and income must be analyzed, whether retirement benefits require additional work, and whether the spouses can reach agreements or need court intervention.
We can discuss the scope of the case and the factors that may affect legal fees during your consultation.
It can. Divorce can affect a will, trust, powers of attorney, beneficiary designations, and other estate planning documents.
Your estate plan should be reviewed during the divorce process rather than waiting until the judgment is entered. Beneficiary designations for retirement accounts and insurance policies deserve particular attention because they may operate separately from your will or trust.
A divorced spouse may qualify for benefits based on a former spouse’s Social Security earnings record if certain requirements are met. Generally, the marriage must have lasted at least 10 years, the claimant must meet the applicable age requirements, and the claimant cannot be remarried when applying on the former spouse’s record.
Social Security rules are separate from California family law. If those benefits are important to your retirement planning, they should be considered as part of your overall financial picture.
A later-life divorce requires more than dividing what is in the bank today. Retirement income, pensions, property, support, taxes, and future expenses can all affect whether a settlement works after the divorce is over.
Rombro & Manley LLP helps Torrance clients evaluate those issues and understand their options before making decisions that can affect their financial future. Contact our Torrance senior divorce attorneys to schedule a confidential consultation and discuss your case, assets, retirement benefits, and goals. The sooner these issues are identified, the more clearly you can evaluate the terms of your divorce.
*AV Preeminent and BV Distinguished are certification marks of Reed Elsevier Properties Inc., used in accordance with the Martindale-Hubbell certification procedures, standards and policies. Martindale-Hubbell is the facilitator of a peer review rating process. Ratings reflect the confidential opinions of members of the Bar and the judiciary. Martindale-Hubbell ratings fall into two categories – legal ability and general ethical standards.
Although we provide the breadth of family law services offered by a large law firm, we are committed to handling each case with the care and personal attention offered by a small firm.
To schedule your initial consultation with an experienced California attorney, contact us online or by phone at 310-545-1900.
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