Note that answers given in this section cannot take the place of a divorce professional. For legal or financial advice about your specific situation, you must consult a qualified BC financial planner. See our disclaimer.

"I'm worried that this divorce is going to ruin me financially. Do you have any tips to prevent this?"

In most cases, the biggest financial costs of a divorce are the lawyer's billable hours, court costs, and a settlement that has not been modeled so that you could see its potential impact.

In order to reduce billable hours and potential court costs:

1. Try to get you and your spouse to agree on as much as possible on division of assets and custody issues. These are the two biggies; the less the lawyer has to play go-between, the lower the legal bills.
2. Keep in mind the value of the asset for which you are fighting.
3. Do not let sentiment outweigh common sense.  
4. Do not let the desire to punish outweigh common sense.
5. Do not use children as pawns.
6. Compromise when it makes sense to keep you out of court, but
7. Get a model of the settlement done to see how your situation may play out. A Financial Divorce Specialist will run a model that takes into account your income, assets, child support (if any), spousal support (if any), both spouses' expenses, and any income or expense adjustments, to show you what your tax situation, cash flow, and net worth might look like (given realistic assumptions), over five years, ten years, or however long a period you choose.
8. Keep your lawyer in the loop, so they can flag potential problems early.
9. Remember this is your divorce. Settlements others have received, or whatever happened in your friends' cases, have little or no bearing on yours unless you let it. Family and friends can sometimes do more harm than good with their well-meaning advice.

You can gain peace of mind from seeing that you will not be ruined, or you can negotiate a more realistic settlement.

About the author of this British Columbia Divorce FAQ:

Akeela B. Davis is a Certified Financial Planner, Financial Divorce Specialist, and Investment Advisor with TD Waterhouse in Vancouver, BC.

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