Centennial Divorce Lawyers

Divorce is difficult. It marks a significant ending, and emotions often run high during the process. Even in the most amicable situations, there is an opportunity for conflict. These conflicts can take the process completely off the rails, creating more turmoil for all parties. Having experienced divorce attorneys in Centennial, OH, managing your case can help prevent conflicts from arising or intensifying and protect your interests. After reviewing your situation with you, your attorney can also direct you toward what type of divorce process that could work best for you and your spouse.

Uncontested Divorce

Uncontested divorces are the easiest to resolve and a good option if you and your partner agree completely–or almost completely–on important issues. Still, it is best to have representation from a divorce attorney. Your lawyer will take you through the legal process and give sound guidance on how the court might rule on issues you may not have considered.

Once you and your partner have come to an agreement on all issues, your attorney will prepare all documents establishing the terms of that agreement and file them with the court. You only have to go before the judge for a hearing if there are minor children involved and your partner does not have representation. 

Divorce Through Mediation

Divorce mediation allows divorcing couples to work through the issues of their divorce without going through litigation–an often contentious process. Spouses hire a mediator, a neutral third party, whose role is to listen to both sides and offer suggestions for resolution. 

Though mediation is designed to preserve relationships or at least avoid extreme conflict, there is still room for dispute. A Centennial divorce lawyer will represent you throughout mediation, advocating for your rights and challenging any attempts to deny you those rights or de-center your family’s best interests. 

Collaborative Divorce

Collaborative divorce is a voluntary process and is codified in C.R.S.13-24-101. It is an “alternative settlement dispute process.” Both parties must commit to resolving their divorce issues out of court and with assistance from their respective collaborative attorneys. The collaborative attorneys work cooperatively and with a neutral facilitator and, potentially, other neutral experts to resolve the divorce issues. Neutral experts may include those with expertise in finance or parenting and child welfare.

Litigated Divorce

Unfortunately, some divorces are so fraught they must go through the litigation process. In these contested divorces, the parties do not agree on terms, and each issue meets with conflict. Having experienced representation is especially critical in litigated divorces. Your Centennial divorce lawyers will strive to negotiate an agreement without going to trial and will let you know when it is in your best interest to settle. However, we also know that some situations demand a trial fight, and should that be your situation, we will fight fiercely on your behalf and for your family’s best interests. 

Issues to Settle in Divorce

No matter how ready you are for your marriage to end, you must resolve important divorce issues before your divorce is finalized and you can fully move on with your life. The issues at hand are high-stakes–they affect your finances and, if you have kids, your relationship with and the wellbeing of your children. Working through these issues with a skilled divorce attorney on your side makes the process more equitable and more efficient.

Spousal Maintenance

In Colorado, spousal maintenance (also known as “alimony”) is not guaranteed in divorce. Usually, courts only order spousal maintenance if one partner earns significantly more than the other or if the partner earning less is financially dependent on the higher earner.

For marriages with a combined income of less than $240,000, the Colorado divorce (or family) courts use specific spousal maintenance guidelines to calculate maintenance amounts. For marriages with higher income, it is more difficult to determine the amount.

The courts consider many factors when deciding whether to order maintenance and the amount. Factors include, among others:

• Income of each spouse
• Each spouse’s contributions to the home and marital estate (value of the marriage assets)
• Each spouse’s earning capacity
• The age and physical and mental health of each spouse
• Reasonable lifestyle and financial needs
• How long the couple has been married 

How long maintenance orders last depends in large part on the length of the marriage. Typically, they extend from one-third to one-half of the marriage’s duration. Still, the court has the discretion to adjust those time frames or even assign indefinite orders, potentially requiring one spouse to pay the other maintenance for life.

Division of Marital Property

Statute 14-10-113 of C.R.S. Chapter 14 (referenced earlier) establishes Colorado as an equitable distribution state. In some states, marital assets are divided 50/50–each spouse gets half. Under equitable distribution, assets are distributed fairly, but not necessarily equally, depending on each spouse’s needs and situation.

Though intended to promote equity and prevent one spouse from leaving the marriage in financial distress, equitable distribution can be subjective, and that subjectivity can lead to conflict. 

Protect yourself from unfair distribution with representation from experienced divorce lawyers from 

Griffiths Law. 

Your attorney can help as you and your spouse identify which assets, debts, or property fall into the “marital” and “separate” categories. Sometimes, an ex will try to include their own debts in the marital category, saddling you with debts they own, or exclude shared assets, claiming ownership or hiding their value. We will also make sure you do not overlook any marital assets.

• Separate: Assets or debt brought into the marriage
• Marital: Assets or debt acquired during the marriage, with the exception of gifts, inheritances, or exchanged property intended for one spouse

As with maintenance, the courts considered different factors when distributing marital property, including:

• Increased or decreased values of separate property accrued during the marriage
• Each spouse’s economic situation
• The value of each partner’s separate property
• The use and subsequent depletion of separate property for the sake of the marriage
• Each spouse’s contribution to the process of acquiring marital assets. For example, if one spouse is a stay-at-home parent, this spouse contributed significantly to the other spouse’s opportunity to earn income 

Parenting Time Agreement

“Child custody” is not a term recognized by the Colorado Family Court. Instead, the State uses “parenting time agreement” to reference elementsincluded in what many know as the issue of child custody. Determining parental roles and responsibilities is often the most sensitive aspect of a divorce case, and our goal is to help you and your children through this process as compassionately and productively as possible.

Under Colorado law and as explained in the State’s “Connecting with Your Kids” handbook, the court considers the best interests of the child when determining:

• Legal Custody: Who makes major decisions for the child’s welfare
• Physical Custody: With which parent the child spends the most time
• Parental Responsibilities: The “sum of all duties and responsibilities” parents owe their children
• Decision-Making Ability: The responsibility to make decisions regarding a specific situation or aspect of life for the child
• Parenting Time: The actual time children spend with each parent

Elements of parenting time agreements can be assigned on a sole or joint basis. “Sole” means one parent has full control of that element, and “joint” means parents share control.

Factors considered when creating the terms of a parenting time agreement include:

• Wishes of each parent
• Wishes of the child
• Interaction and relationship between the child and each parent and siblings
• Child’s connection to school, home, and community
• Mental and physical health of all involved parties
• Each parent’s ability to encourage the child’s relationship and affection with the other parent
• How past parental involvement reflects values, mutual support, and investment of time
• How far the parents live from each other
• Whether either parent has abused the child or a spouse or partner
• Extent to which each parent puts the child’s needs above their own

Both parents must contribute to the child’s financial support. Colorado’s schedule of support is based on the “parents’ gross income and the number of overnights the children spend in each parent’s home,” according to the handbook.

Count on your Centennial divorce attorneys to prioritize your child’s needs and protect your relationship with your child as you go through the parenting time agreement process. There are several possible plan options and schedules and we will work to secure the one best for your situation. Should you need help enforcing or modifying an agreement already in place, we can help with that, too.

Here to Help You Through a Challenging Time

Whether your divorce is uncontested or contentious, you should not go through it without experienced legal representation. Losing a marriage is difficult enough, and an unfair divorce agreement just adds to that loss, creating long-term, maybe even lifelong, consequences. A Centennial divorce attorney from Griffiths Law is here to help you avoid problems and come to a fair agreement as swiftly and with as little stress as possible. Contact us with a call or a message. We are ready to help you and your family move on with your lives and into a secure, peaceful future.