Tampa residents in their retirement years who are faced with the prospect of divorce will have a lot of questions.
They’ll want to know how retirement funds can be divided fairly. Confusion over who gets to keep the family home may arise. Couples going through divorce as senior citizens who generally agree on how assets should be divided can save themselves a lot of money and a lot of headaches. They may not agree on every point, but they can turn to the help of a mediator to settle lingering questions.
A Tampa divorce mediation attorney can help you make a collaborative divorce work for both partners so you can keep more of what you worked so hard for. This option should also help couples avoid having to sort things out in divorce court.
Schedule a Consultation with a Tampa Senior Citizen Divorce Lawyer and Mediator
If you are considering divorce as a senior citizen, an initial case evaluation with the team at Robert Sparks Attorneys provides you with vital information about the process ahead. A mediated divorce might be right in your situation and could save you time and money, but you must make sure you come out of negotiations with what’s fair.
Contact us to schedule a confidential consultation to find out if this option is right for you. Our experienced Tampa senior citizen divorce attorneys can mediate divorce negotiations and represent the interests of both parties.
We can also represent one partner in a divorce that proves more difficult to sort out. The divorce lawyers at Robert Sparks Attorneys want to make sure you have the support you need to rebuild your life after a divorce to fully enjoy your retirement years.
Mediated Divorce in Florida
Divorce can take an emotional and financial toll on those involved. That’s especially true in a divorce involving older couples. A husband and wife may have been together for decades and could have built up considerable savings and retirement plans. Dividing these assets fairly may be a frustrating task.
But couples that sort out these issues themselves or with help from a mediator can avoid having their private lives put on display in a Florida courtroom. Mediation helps keeps them from having to leave their fates in the hands of a Divorce Judge.
Collaborative divorce means that both partners try to sort out divorce terms without involving a judge. But it’s rare that couples can agree on what’s fair regarding every issue they must consider.
This is where a Tampa senior citizen divorce mediator is helpful. A mediator comes in as a neutral, independent party familiar with divorce law (generally this person is also a family lawyer) to help negotiate a settlement between the divorcing parties.
The entire process is geared to be more relaxed and informal. The process when working with a Robert Sparks Tampa Divorce Mediator is also completely confidential.
The purpose is for both sides to reach an agreement with which they can be happy. Offers and counteroffers will be made between both sides until an accord on the divorce settlement can be reached.
This is a very effective and efficient process. A mediator overseeing a gray divorce can often help couples come to a consensus when they differ on only a few sticking points.
Issues a Tampa Senior Divorce Mediator Can Help Decide
Couples facing a divorce later in life may not realize just how many issues will have to be decided in negotiations. Both partners will have worked hard and contributed in different ways to marital property, retirement planning, and other assets. Decisions on how to split these resources will have to be made.
A Tampa Senior Divorce Mediator specializes in ironing out these tricky subjects and works to make sure both parties have what they need to keep up their standard of living through their golden years.
A divorce mediator would help spouses find common ground on these factors and many others:
- Retirement and pensions. These benefits will need to help support both parties after a divorce.
- Income and Spousal Support. One partner may still have income arriving from a career, while the other partner gave up a career to help support a spouse and build a family. The income from a job might have to be shared between soon-to-be-divorced senior citizens.
- Healthcare benefits shared by both partners will have to be fairly divided. It’s possible new, separate health plans will have to be opened and spouses will need the financial support to afford those plans.
- Investments Allocation. Both partners should get a fair share of savings and investments. Stocks may have to be cashed in so that each partner gets an equal share.
- Debt. Not all seniors have paid off their mortgages by the time they retire. They may share loans and other debt that usually won’t all fall to just one person. A mediator’s job is to make sure that the responsibility for debt is split fairly.
- Ownership of a family home and other properties. Disputes may arise over who gets to stay in the current home partners currently share.
When you have questions about whether allowing a mediator to help you negotiate is in your best interest, speak with a Tampa Senior Citizen Divorce Lawyer. You could benefit from having a skilled senior divorce mediator handle your case for you and your spouse. It’s also possible that getting your own divorce attorney who is only concerned with looking after your interests is your best choice. We can help you with either option and more.
What to Know About Mediated Divorce in Florida
Agreeing to mediation should mean that you are willing to negotiate with your partner over the division of your marital property. That doesn’t mean you have to agree to something you’re not comfortable with.
These are a few things to keep in mind if you are considering settling your divorce with a senior citizen divorce mediator:
- Mediation does not mean that you and your spouse have to agree on all the issues. It is assumed that you do not agree. Mediation aims to resolve issues of contention.
- Mediation is often less expensive than traditional divorce. Cases are resolved outside of court and mediation is quicker than traditional divorce options, eliminating court fees.
- The mediator in your case does not act as an attorney but can also be an attorney by trade.
- Courts can sometimes order mediation when they believe it is appropriate based on their discretion.
- You may use a private mediator you and your spouse select. If a Florida judge orders you to try mediation, you also have the option of using a mediator assigned by the court.
Speak with an Experienced Tampa Senior Citizen Divorce Lawyer
Going through a divorce can be one of the most stressful events of your life. It’s especially difficult when a long-term marriage comes to an end.
Above the emotional investment involved, couples can have additional assets and possessions that can be difficult to divide up to the satisfaction of both parties. It’s not surprising that many seniors turn to a skilled mediator to help them settle their differences and to help avoid letting a judge decide the terms of a dissolution of marriage.
It’s important to know that you don’t have to face these decisions alone. With decades of collective experience, our Tampa senior divorce lawyers and mediators at Robert Sparks Attorneys have the knowledge of Florida divorce law you’ll need to emerge from divorce able to restart your life the way you want.
Learn more about what we can do to help you by contacting us and scheduling a senior divorce consultation today. We protect those going through divorce in Tampa, St. Petersburg, Clearwater, Dade City, and the surrounding areas.
