Experts tackle divorce: Does 'don't get mad, get everything' still ring true?
Tuesday, August 11th 2009, 4:00 AM
Roca/News
Donald Trump and girlfriend Melania Knauss are joined by Trump's former wife, Ivana.
Don’t get mad. Get everything!” Ivana Trump famously declared during the 1990s. Even for New Yorkers not leading lifestyles of the rich and famous, handling finances during a divorce can be just as tough.
Manhattan restaurateur Noel Firth, 41, learned the hard way, going back and forth endlessly with his wife’s divorce lawyer from 2004 to 2006.
The father of four worked constantly — as an NYPD sergeant, then as a bodyguard for former Mayor Rudy Giuliani’s consulting firm — so his kids “could live in a nice house in Westchester.”
Divorce proceedings get so heated because they determine quality of life, said Manhattan divorce lawyer June Jacobson.
“It’s about whether the kids should go to private school or public school. It could be about scaling back life choices — ‘Should we be taking cabs or the subway?’” she said.
Firth’s lawyer, John O’Donnell, added: “The problem comes in when one spouse has assets and the other doesn’t. You might have a wife who’s a stay-at-home mom and the husband may have several retirement plans, including a pension and 401(k). He might not want her to have any portion. She knows she’s entitled to a portion.”
Among the most complicated situations involve clarifying whether real estate is marital property or separate.
Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/money/2009/08/11/2009-08-11_experts_tackle_divorce_does_dont_get_mad_get_everything_still_ring_true.html#ixzz0NtDixfMI
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