What can I expect in a divorce in Indiana?

Question

My wife and I have been married for 20 years and have two children, 12 and 4.

We have been headed towards a split for a long time...I really don't want to, but I thinktht divorce may be the best option.

I am the primary money earner making ~100K/year, my wife is a sales person and her earnings vary widely (from 10K (currently) - 80K (last year) annually in the last four years.) We have about 20K in equity in our house and aound $200K in stock/IRA/mutual funds.

I want to provide for my childrens' well being and would like to pursue a joint custody arrangement (one week with me, one week with her...I will live in the same town.)

What can I expect from a divorce settlement? How much child support? Does Indiana have alimony or spousal support? Can an arrangement be set up to where she would keep the house and the mortgage, but I make payments to her to cover the mortgage's cost?

What else (other then the issues my kids will endure, I already kow about those) should I exp

Answer 1

Hi - Unfortunelty I can probably give you the answers you are looking for. I also live in Indiana and recently filed for divorce. It sounds like I am a little farther along than you are however.

First, Indiana is a no fault state, meaning, no matter what the reason is for the divorce, it will have no bearing on the outcome of the settlement.

Second, the two of you can agree on anything you want. If you can agree on everything, it will be much quicker and less expensive.

There is no alimony or spousal support laws in Indiana. Your child support will be based on the amount of time you are with them. The more overnights you have with them, the less you will be responsible to pay her. Child daycare costs will also be figured in. It is hard to say exactly how much you will have to pay, I highly recommend getting an attorney!

She can keep the house, and you can pay the mortgage, if that is the agreement that the two of you make. However, for your protection, I would suggest having a clause in your divorce agreement that states - if she sells the property, you receive half of the equity.

Other things to expect.......Because there are children involved, you and your wife will be required to attend a class and a mediation session. I cannot recall the exact name of the class, but it just goes over ideas on how to make the change as easy on the children as possible. The mediation session is a last ditch effort, basically, to see if it is possible to work it out without a divorce.

Lastly, your divorce will not be final for at least 60 days after you file. Even if you agree on everything, the court requires a 60 day period, to be sure neither party wants to change their mind.

Email me if you want, I can probably answer other questions for you.

P.S. Just a side note! The children jumping from house to house every week may not be the best idea. Sorry - not my business, but that can be really tough on them. Better yet, if you and your wife can agree to it, you should just let the children know that they are welcome to stay with either of you whenever they want. That way they don't feel like they are being pulled, they just feel like they have two homes.

Good luck to you!

Answer 2

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Answer 3

Yes, there is spousal sport, sometimes. Yes, she could keep the house and you pay her. It is all about the lawyer you get. It is also about how ammicalbe the divorce is. Since your children are older, joint physical custody is more difficult. It would be more difficult on them ot switch back and forth every week. But, if you both have your houses open and agree on a schedule, then I see no problem. Most problems come when there are either overzealous lawyers or hurt particpants. Oh, there is a "family first" that you will have to pay for and take. www.ai.org might have more information.

Answer 4

With no kids and no valuable assets, you are wasting your time with preliminary hearings. the judge does not need to know why are you getting a divorce and does NOT care about all the nasty little details about it. You are wasting the court's time if what you are diving is pots, pans and dishes. What you should bring? Bank statements and credit card statements showing communal debt and marital assets. So if you have savings, stocks, bonds, mutual funds, pensions, annuities etc. bring that to court so the judge see how it is fair to divide. If you have none of those, then you have no need for a hearing. You can say he keeps his cd's and movies and I keep the frying pans without wasting the judge's time. Typically, any credit card debt is split down the middle. So if during your marriage you got $10k of marital debt, then each walks away with a debt of $5k each. That is done during the divorce proceedings. Good luck

Answer 5

You can expect about 10 to 15 percent of your last two years of income for child support. Most of the others equity and pensions can be settled in mediation. Remember in divorse the only people that win are the lawyers.

Answer 6

I think you should go for the standard visitation, and not you having them one week and her having them one week. This isn't what joint custody is anyway. Your attorney can tell you that. Joint custody is usually in the legal terms, such as joint decision making ability. Judges in most states do not really care for joint physical custody since it causes problem for the children as they get older and schools and friends come into the picture.

Answer 7

If it's in Indiana, the divorce will be much like the state - Boring!!!