Understanding Arizona Legal Separation
In some cases, people are not ready to divorce. There are many reasons you may feel that legal separation is preferable to divorce. For example, you may believe in the sanctity of marriage and feel that getting divorced would be giving up on a covenant that you made. In some cases, people are also worried about the potential financial implications of getting divorced. As a result, they may file for legal separation instead of divorce.
It is important to understand that, while legal separation is similar to divorce in some ways, it is not the same as divorce. A legal separation establishes a new status for you and your spouse, which is that of legally separated couple. If you have children, the legal separation will also establish a new custodial and financial arrangement for them.
However, after you have become legally separated, you cannot remarry. You are still married in the eyes of the law until you file for divorce from legal separation. Legal separation is also often used as a means of determining how assets will be divided in the event of divorce. Because a legal separation is similar to a divorce , many people file for legal separation to determine how the court will rule in their case if they do end up divorcing.
In some situations, this can help determine whether people are ready to "let go" of the marriage or if they would prefer to continue living together. Legal separation is typically available to all couples in Arizona. You may technically file for legal separation even if your spouse does not want to be separated. Your spouse will be challenged to agree to the legal separation terms, but you may still be able to obtain a legal separation from the courts if you truly desire to be separated.
The result is that you will be under the obligation to obey the conditions established in your legal separation agreement. In some cases, these are automatically incorporated into your divorce, but you will need to petition the court to do so. Legal separation is an option for you and your spouse if you have come to a point where you feel that you cannot continue to live together without establishing legal boundaries, but you are not ready to file for divorce. Before filing for legal separation, however, you should consult an experienced Arizona attorney.
Financial Costs of Legal Separation
Financial Implications of Legal Separation in Arizona
The primary goal for many people is to be financially self-sufficient for themselves and their children. The concept of sharing finances is a marriage institution and after couples divorce, many struggle with redistributing financial assets.
While many people consider legal separation as a way to test the waters of separating from their spouse, the exact financial assets and liabilities are not known. When spouses separate, they must split their combined assets, so it’s critical to know what assets are available for splitting. Arizona is a community property state, meaning that marital property is equally divided between spouses, and debts are shared as well.
While living apart from your spouse may allow you to have some sort of financial independence, legal separation doesn’t protect your finances from your spouse acquiring additional debt.
There are dozens of ways for separating spouses to divide their assets, which often means an attorney or family mediator must step in and resolve any issues. Arizona family law involves many aspects that may be pushing you to consider negotiating with your spouse instead of continuing to live together. The financial implications of legal separation include division of debts, spousal support, and the uncertainty of redistributing community property in the future.
Debt division
In Arizona, couples are responsible for any debt that is acquired when they are legally married. This includes, but is not limited to:
If you continue to live together with a spouse, all debts cannot be legally divided because both spouses are responsible for all of the financial obligations. Separating from your spouse allows you to seek your independence with regard to financial assets and liabilities.
Obtaining spousal support
While some states consider spousal support to be gender neutral, many people are surprised to learn that women earn approximately 20 percent less than their male spouses after a divorce. This is known as the wage gap in America, which refers to the difference between women’s earnings and men’s earnings among full-time, year-round workers.
Although you may have spent years at home with your children, there are financial implications that come with spousal support. If you are earning less than your spouse, your spouse will need to maintain your household for the time-being through spousal or child support.
Due to the wage gap, you may require spousal support until you secure employment to maintain the same quality of life you enjoyed during the marriage. In this case, legal separation allows you to enjoy a higher standard of living than if you were living on your own, but you’ll still have to rely on your ex-spouse for support.
Distribution of community property
The most common way that couples divide their property or finances is through a community property division. This means that all the property acquired after marriage is generally divisible equally after divorce. While separating from your spouse allows you to individually acquire property, you may be entered into a community property debt with your spouse. This can lead to more financial problems later if one of you has a poor credit history.
Psychological Implications
Like any other alternative to divorce, legal separation in Arizona has its own drawbacks that should be considered. Legal separation can prolong uncertainty. In some cases, it might result in cohabitation that prolongs the conflict at hand. While a regular divorce could finalize a transition in your life, formalizing your separation for the time being lengthens the process. In this sense, proceeding with a divorce could arguably be less stressful. The potential for high-stress living arrangements may also be a drawback of getting legally separated. If you share a home with your spouse while you’re striving for emotional independence, things could become contentious. Having to deal with a spouse that seeks to control your actions can be stressful and psychologically detrimental over time. Family dynamics sometimes change for the worse when a couple legally separates. Living apart for a while may eventually sow discord into your family, especially if you have children. If one partner tries to keep kids away from the other, it can have negative effects on everyone involved. Legal separation can ultimately hurt your relationship with others, including friends and family. It could even encourage some people to distance themselves from you in what appears as passive judgement through the choices you make.
Legal Issues and Expenses
A legal separation is more than just a piece of paper. While you may think you can simply sit down with your spouse and draft an agreement to separate, doing so will not properly divide your real property. When it comes to separating debts or dividing bank accounts, spouses cannot simply agree on what will happen with the accounts and then do so without the court’s involvement. If any real property must be divided, it must be done by a court and within the terms of a decree of legal separation just like a divorce. As such, a legal separation requires attorneys’ fees, filing fees, and could take months or even years to finalize.
Even in simple uncontested cases (where the spouses agree on the terms), there are fees involved . An attorney must review the financial conditions of the couple, the needs of the parties, and draft the documents specific to the situation. Calculating child support, dividing assets, and other matters must be carefully planned out, and thoroughly documented. It is recommended to have an attorney draft a legal separation decree since they will understand the required legal stipulations and language that a judge might not allow an untrained adult to use.
A legal separation is, in many ways, similar to a divorce. The only difference is that the marriage bond is not broken. If you don’t want to commit the substantial resources to a separation then you may wish to consider a divorce instead.
Effects on Children
Another potential drawback of a legal separation is the effect on children. In Arizona, a legal separation can last years or even indefinitely. This uncertainty can lead to instability in the lives of your children as a legal separation itself does not lead to a divorce – the spouses must later either agree to the divorce or petition the court to do so. For many children, having two sets of living situations becomes highly confusing. They are expecting a reconciliation that never comes. At the same time, they are struggling to accept the new norm in their lives of having two homes. If you spend any time as a family lawyer, you have probably seen the negative effects of this instability play out first-hand as families split up or children feel caught between two parents who constantly bicker over a divorce. From eating disorders to emotional and mental problems, to anger and depression, these problems can be compounded with the uncertainty of a legal separation.
Impact on Reconciliation or Divorce
Contemplating a legal separation as opposed to a divorce but not completely ruling out the potential for reconciliation at some point? Legal separation can create unnecessary difficulties for future reconciliations or transitioning to divorce proceedings if you and your spouse ultimately decide to go that route. Many married couples are legally separated for months or even years before proceeding with a divorce. Three scenarios may occur when those couples decide they want to either resume their marriage or separate their lives permanently. Before moving forward, a few legal issues should be addressed:
- Reconciliation After Separation: If you and your spouse decide to reconcile after being legally separated, you will need to have the divorce proceedings in your case withdrawn. When you are already getting divorced, the issues the couple was fighting over before the separation need to be ironed out. If divorce proceedings are in existence, the judge will not be interested in the couple getting back together with one another. You will have to convince the divorce court that you have reconciled and are going to stay together.
- Remarriage After Separation: Getting remarried after a formal separation is possible in many situations. Typically, the same judge who issued your original legal separation in your county will annul the separation and grant you a marriage license . You must, however, confirm with your attorney that the separation order in your case does not prevent court officials from passing judgment on the remarriage. You will need to file a petition with the court to remove the separation agreement so that you can remarry. This will mean getting a new marriage license. In most situations, this type of case will be filed without a hearing unless the judge found problems with your case. If the original judge who handled the separation order cannot hear the case, the newly assigned judge must check to confirm that previous judge’s order does not need to be set aside. Once the judge has resolved the case and issued a new marriage license, you are free to tie the knot once again.
- Transitioning from Separation to Divorce: If your circumstances have not changed, you may be ready to proceed with divorce after a period of formal separation. If this tells the judge that circumstances have not changed for the couple, the judge may be willing to work out the divorce order in a timely fashion. A good judge will not keep a case open for indefinite periods of time. Never assume that a judge is going to the right thing, however, because the judge may have a full schedule. You should be prepared to secure a divorce as quickly as possible after you have been separated if you don’t want to face additional problems.