An uncontested divorce is highly recommended because it’s less stressful and cheaper. It takes less time since spouses agree on crucial matters and only go to court to validate their agreements. Therefore, if you and your spouse can work out a settlement for your divorce, this process should benefit you.
However, in some instances, you may need to consider litigation. These include situations where there are:
Complex marital property arrangements
If you and your spouse have complex marital property arrangements (prenup or postnuptial), or you conflict on a thing or two, it may be best to go to court.
A spouse that is hiding assets
You and your spouse will provide lists of separate and marital property. The latter list should be similar. If an asset is missing on your spouse’s list, you should raise questions. They may have just accidentally omitted it.
However, they may also be hiding assets from you. They can do this by:
- Withdrawing large amounts of cash
- Transferring money to an offshore account
- Paying family loans
- Giving expensive gifts
- Undervaluing assets
- Hiding assets in their business, such as creating imaginary employees and paying them high salaries
- Investing in cryptocurrencies since the anonymity of blockchains allows people to hide thousands of dollars
If your spouse’s financial statements don’t add up, you may not benefit from an uncontested divorce as expected.
History of domestic violence
If your marriage involved domestic violence or an inequity of power and control, you may have trouble asserting yourself during divorce negotiations. An uncontested divorce requires both parties to be free and honest about their requests. If you can’t do this, you should consider going to court.
While an uncontested divorce offers noteworthy benefits, it may not be the best option in the above-discussed circumstances. It will help to get legal guidance to make informed decisions.
