Retirement Funds During a Divorce: Who Gets Them?

If you have decided to end your marriage by getting a divorce, you should be ready to deal with the financial repercussions of your decision. Often, both income and debts accumulated during your marriage must be divided during a divorce. Because of this, you may have to give up half of your assets, including retirement funds and home equity.

But, it can be quite hard to predict how the asset division process will be handled by the court because of the uniqueness of every divorce case. Without a prenuptial agreement in place, the court will make decisions on this matter. You and your spouse may decide to keep your respect accounts or divide them equally. Regardless of your choice, make sure to do it with full information and with a divorce lawyer from Rochester, MN law office of Kohlmeyer Hagen by your side. Trying to save on attorney’s fees when you divide retirement plans will cost you more than you will save.

Minnesota Divides Marital Assets Equitably

When a judge splits assets and debts between spouses, they do it in a way that is fair to both parties. The court will make this decision if you and your spouse cannot agree to how you will divide them yourselves.

Keep in mind that equitable distribution does not always mean equal. Rather, the court will divide what they believe is fair for both parties, considering factors such as the duration of the marriage, and the contribution of every spouse to the marriage. Also, the court will consider spousal or child support orders when dividing marital assets and debts.

The Court Usually Divides Retirement Accounts and Pensions

As the court decides who gets what, they do not care much about the name that appears on an account. Instead, they care about when deposits got made. Typically, funds accrued during the marriage are considered marital property. Also, they can split pensions, which are often an employment benefit at a certain business.

Moreover, retirement accounts will be split. Although this means getting less to retire on than you have planned, you don’t want to try to keep your marriage for a more satisfying retirement time. The best thing you can do is to plan carefully and try to rebuild your retirement assets. In terms of your finances, divorce is not easy. But, you can depend on an experienced attorney to help you divide retirement funds fairly.