Ending a marriage is difficult no matter how old you are or how long you have been married. That said, people can face different challenges depending on where they are in life when they divorce.
In this post, we will examine some general ideas of what people might expect during a California divorce based on their age.
Divorcing before 35
Younger parties may not have the complex assets to divide that older parties have. In fact, there could be more debt to divide than assets. This can also mean that resolving divorce-related matters quickly and amicably to minimize expenses can be a top priority.
However, couples at this age may have babies and young children, which can lead to contentious custody and child support disputes.
Divorcing between 35 and 55
Parties in this age bracket often have more complicated assets to divide, from a small business to investments and personal property.
Many people also have children, and one parent may have left their career to stay home with the children. As such, child custody and visitation will likely be issues, as could child and spousal support.
Divorcing after 55
In so-called gray divorces, spouses may not have to worry about child support or parenting plans. However, they could have considerable assets, including retirement accounts. And financial issues are of utmost importance, as people may not be planning to work much longer. As this Kiplinger’s article notes, rebuilding wealth after a gray divorce can be very difficult, so ensuring settlements are fair and avoiding unnecessary penalties is crucial.
One other challenge is that after decades of marriage, it can be very difficult to trace assets and spending to figuring out whether certain types of property are marital or separate.
Navigating divorce at any age
Of course, every divorce is different and there is no certainty that these issues will or will not affect a specific couple just because spouses are a certain age. However, this can give readers an idea of the types of divorce-related matters that will be more likely to arise so that they can plan ahead and potentially have an easier time navigating the divorce process.