12 Common Mistakes Women Make in New Jersey Divorce Cases

Navigating New Jersey divorce cases can be complex and emotionally challenging. Perhaps in no other judicial arena does the law and emotions clash as mightily as during New Jersey marriage dissolution proceedings. Women and men each face their own set of more commonly occurring mistakes that are made in these types of proceedings. Today we take a look at 12 common mistakes women tend to make in New Jersey divorce cases.

Emotional Decision-Making

Bear in mind that both women and men are prone to emotional decision-making during New Jersey divorce cases. Making mention of emotional decision-making is not intended to be construed as some sort of gender-based bias against women in marriage dissolution proceedings. When a similar discussion is had in regard to common mistakes men make in New Jersey divorce cases, emotional decision-making will be on the list.

A review of divorce proceedings indicate that there are three instances in which women (and men) need to be most on guard against having emotions override logical judgment when making important decisions:

• Property division
• Child custody arrangements
• Financial settlements

Social Media Mistakes

Common social media mistakes that women can and do step into during divorce cases include:

• Posting or sharing information about new relationships
• Sharing details about personal spending or lifestyle issues
• Venting about ex-spouse or ongoing proceedings on a social media platform

If you fear falling into one of these mistakes, you are better served taking a social media break while your divorce proceedings are pending.

Financial Oversights

Critical financial mistakes to avoid:

• Failing to gather complete financial documentation
• Failing to consider tax implications of asset division proposals
• Overlooking or ignoring hidden assets or accounts

Child-Related Issues

Mistakes concerning children during divorce:

• Speaking negatively about ex-spouse to children
• Not documenting parenting time violations
• Making unilateral decisions about children’s activities

This trio of errors can have a profound impact on ultimate child custody and parenting time determinations is a specific New Jersey divorce case.

Legal Process Errors

Common procedural mistakes:

• Not responding to legal documents in a timely manner
• Failing to comply with court orders
• Missing important court-imposed deadlines

In point of fact, these types of matters are best avoided when a woman in a divorce case retains capable legal counsel, which is discussed in greater detail in a moment.

Documentation Problems

Parties to a divorce proceeding must be on top of documentation matters. Indeed, all aspects of a divorce case are document dependent on many levels. The most commonplace types in of mistakes in regard to documentation include:

• Not maintaining expense records
• Failing to document communications with ex-spouse
• Not keeping copies of important legal documents

Property Division Errors

New Jersey is what is known as an equitable division of property state. What this means is that the assets and debts of a couple seeking to end their marriage are divided in a fair manner depending on the facts and circumstances of a specific case. Commonplace mistakes in handling marital assets and debts include:

• Not getting proper valuations of property, including if not particularly the marital residence
• Overlooking retirement accounts and pensions
• Failing to consider future value of assets

Support-Related Mistakes

Alimony or spousal support as well as child support can prove to be some of the more contentious matters in a New Jersey divorce case. Mistakes regarding alimony and support made by women (and men) in divorce proceedings include these issues with alarming regularity:

• Not considering long-term financial needs
• Failing to account for inflation
• Overlooking insurance needs

Professional Help Oversights

We touched on the need for legal counsel in divorce proceedings to avoid commonplace mistakes and to obtain the best possible  resolution of a marriage dissolution proceeding. Unfortunately, mistakes can be and sometimes are made even in the process of seeking legal representation and the assistance of other professionals that include:

• Not hiring experienced legal counsel
• Failing to consult financial advisors
• Overlooking the need for emotional support or counseling

Privacy and Security Issues

Common privacy mistakes made by women who are seeking an end to their marriages include:

• Not changing passwords on accounts (of all types)
• Failing to secure important documents
• Sharing too much information with others

Settlement Mistakes

Settlement mistakes oftentimes are connected with emotions experienced in a divorce. A trio of more regularly occurring errors in handling settlements are:

• Accepting first settlement offer without analysis
• Not considering long-term implications
• Rushing to settle to “get it over with”

Future Planning Oversights

Finally, mistakes in post-divorce planning are also distressingly commonplace and do include:

• Not updating estate-related documents
• Failing to modify beneficiary designations
• Not planning for future financial independence – your own financial independence

If you have questions concerning a New Jersey Divorce, call the Law Offices of Peter Van Aulen at (201) 845-7400 for a free consultation.