Divorce & Legal Separation
Divorce can be one of the most stressful life events a person can experience. You may feel great sadness, anger, confusion, grief, relief, or any number of conflicting emotions. The decisions you make to finalize your divorce may affect you and your loved ones for years to come, and the entire process can often feel overwhelming.
It is essential that the attorney you retain can guide you through this process with knowledge, skill, and compassion, and that you trust and feel comfortable with your attorney. I will listen carefully to your specific questions and concerns, and then provide you with a roadmap of options tailored to your particular case. I am a strong and confident negotiator, and my goal is always to spare you the expense and stress of litigating your divorce. However, if litigation becomes necessary, I am a skilled and strategic advocate in the courtroom.
Divorce in Oregon
Initiating and then finalizing a divorce is a marathon, not a sprint. From start to finish, the legal process of divorce can take anywhere from 9-12 months to complete, particularly if litigation becomes necessary. However, if you and your spouse are able to reach a mutually agreed upon settlement prior to your divorce trial date, your divorce may be finalized sooner than that.
Oregon is a “pure no fault” divorce state. This means that you and your spouse do not need to provide any reason for your divorce other than that irreconcilable differences have caused the breakdown of your marriage. Oregon is also an “equitable distribution” state, which means that the law requires that property, assets, and debts acquired during the marriage are distributed between both parties fairly and equitably.
High asset divorceS
A fair and equitable distribution of joint marital property, assets, and debts does not necessarily mean a direct 50/50 split. In particular, for couples with significant assets – multiple real properties, closely held and/or co-owned businesses, high yearly incomes, inherited wealth, multiple bank accounts, stock investment portfolios, significant retirement assets, and the like – divorce can entail an additional level of complexity. Sometimes one spouse has assumed all or most of the responsibility for managing the marital assets, and divorce can leave the non-managing spouse exposed. Even if both spouses are knowledgeable about their joint marital asset portfolio, divorce can create uncertainty as to how to best divide such assets fairly and also account for each party’s future tax liabilities. I work closely with financial professionals as needed – CPAs, tax attorneys, business evaluators, commercial and residential real estate appraisers, investment analysts, etc – to ensure that you receive an equitable portion of your joint martial estate, with the least long-term financial cost to you.
Legal separation
A legal separation in Oregon is similar to a divorce in the sense that the same issues that arise in a divorce — custody, child or spousal support, property and asset division, etc — can also be resolved or adjudicated in a legal separation. There may be good reasons to legally separate prior to finalizing a divorce. For instance, if you and your spouse have acquired substantial assets during your marriage, there may well be a tax benefit to both of you if you postpone a final division of those assets. In Oregon, if you and your spouse choose to legally separate for this or any other reason, you may then easily convert that legal separation into a divorce for up to two years following the legal separation.