UT Divorce Law – Common Problems

This article discusses common problems concerning UT divorce law.

Common Divorce problems – how to solve/prevent them:

Getting married too young is a common problem in Utah. The risk of divorce is higher the younger someone gets married – especially if someone gets married younger than 20, and/or makes less than $25,000 annually. The average age of women getting married in the U.S. is 27, and 29 for men. In Utah, the average age of women getting married in Utah is 24, and 26 for men. When it comes to deciding who to marry, one must think long term, not just short-term. If someone does this, the risk of divorce will decline dramatically; not only will individuals be more prepared for marriage, they will be choosing someone whom they will stay with. Avoid becoming involved UT divorce law by following some of this advice.

Divorce Education is a requirement in Utah for couples who desire divorce and have minors. It benefits individuals because it is educational, but it is required by UT divorce law and may set some people off, or create more tension between couples.

Parenting children can be one of the most difficult problems to deal with when it comes to divorce and UT divorce law. Divorce can affect so many people and can have the longest/hardest impact on the children of the divorced couple. Preventing/solving this problem starts well before having children, it starts with the decision to get married to the right person. Getting married to the right person is difficult, especially when emotions are high. Some couples are so in love with each other, they want to get married – in these moments, the couples should think and/or discuss long-term goals, and the direction each other would like to go.

Court can be prevented if the couple is uncontested about the terms of the divorce, and the court that are filed with the court does not request an informal/formal hearing, according to UT divorce law.

Disagreement on terms of the divorce. When disagreements happen, a court, attorney, or both need to get involved – which prolongs the length and raises the expense of the divorce, according to UT divorce law. One does not need to give up everything to their spouse in a divorce in order to have the divorce go smoothly; they need to simply work together and agree on who gets what.

Child Support is a common problem in the fact that in many cases, the spouse who must pay child support does not. Legal action can happen if the spouse does not pay for child support for a certain period of time. Preventing a parent from not paying child support is difficult, because the parent who has custody may not want to take legal action to make it right – they may not know why the other parent is not paying for child support.

How are assets split in Utah?

1. 1. Assets are split in Utah in various ways. One of which being right down the middle, allowing each spouse half of the assets. Part of the process of divorce is splitting up the marital property. In Utah, this is done according to “equitable distribution.” This does not mean it is done evenly. It can be, but each case is different and it is possible that the assets could be split quite unevenly.

How is child custody determined?

1. 1. In many cases, the parents will decide outside of court on who will get custody. If an agreement is made and the court rules it worthy, then that parent usually gets custody. If a couple disagrees about custody, then usually a family judge will decide who gets custody.
  2. A family judge determines which parent will get custody based on many variables. The most important variable being the child’s best interest. There are many factors that help a judge determine what would be in the best interest of the child. One example might be if one parent has already been taking good care of the child(ren) by themselves. Another might be proximity to other family and/or schools. Another factor might be if one parent is less financially stable or has any issues with drugs or alcohol.

How much child support will one pay?

1. 1. “According to the Census Bureau Reports, the average monthly child support payment is $430” (Atwood, 2016). It is important to remember that child support is not a punishment. It is not alimony. It is simply money paid by one parent to another to ensure that enough money is available to properly raise the children. The amount of time that each parent has custody can dramatically affect how much child support is owed.

One must pay child support in terms and variables of income of the custodial and noncustodial parent, health insurance of both parents, daycare costs, etc. Each case is different, meaning each parent who must pay child support, pays an ethical amount to compensate the divorce.

Alimony, or spousal support, is providing financial support for an ex-spouse. Alimony usually happens after a divorce, and it is implemented from a judge who determines that one spouse makes significantly more money than the other spouse, and therefore needs to provide financial support for the other spouse. Alimony is usually not required to divorced spouses who were not married for very long and/or earn similar amounts of money.