St. Cloud PCG's Law Blog

Why divorce is rarely ever 50/50

On behalf of Pennington, Cherne, Gaarder & Geiger Hagen, PLLC on Thursday, April 18, 2019.

The divorce rate usually happens to between 40 and 50% of all marriages. It is lower in some states than others, such as Minnesota. The state has one of the lowest stress rates in the country, which likely contributes to its lower divorce rate.

Any couples going into divorce need to debunk some common myths before getting too far along. For example, many couples assume the court will divide all assets in an even split. However, that is not always the case. While some states call for an equal distribution of property, Minnesota is not one of them. Minnesota calls for an equitable division of assets, which means divorce is not always 50/50. This means each spouse walks away from the marriage with property the court deemed fair considering all circumstances.

What constitutes a fair and equitable property settlement?

On behalf of Pennington, Cherne, Gaarder & Geiger Hagen, PLLC on Wednesday, March 20, 2019.

If you face obtaining a Minnesota divorce, one of the things that likely concerns you the most is the way in which you and your spouse will split up your marital assets. As you may know, Minnesota requires an equitable distribution of marital property in any divorce. But what makes up a fair and equitable property settlement?

Unfortunately, no definition exists for “fair and equitable.” While a 50/50 split of marital property may be fair and equitable for one divorcing couple, it may not be so for you and your spouse. It all depends on your circumstances.

Do you want to keep better control over your divorce?

On behalf of Pennington, Cherne, Gaarder & Geiger Hagen, PLLC on Tuesday, February 19, 2019.

If you and your spouse have decided to end your marriage, you may be dreading litigation and having to comply with the decisions a judge will make for your life going forward.

There is, however, another option. Mediation has many advantages over litigation, and one of them is allowing you and your spouse to control the outcome of your divorce.

Child support calculation and payment

On behalf of Pennington, Cherne, Gaarder & Geiger Hagen, PLLC on Monday, January 21, 2019.

Divorce and child custody cases often cause high stress. A hot point with many is money, and more specifically, how much one thinks the other should receive.

Child support payments can cause an ongoing issue between former spouses long after the judge issues the final divorce order. Some people who pay child support do not always like to do so, and because it is a recurring payment, the issue may continue to loom. How is child support calculated, and how can someone receive it without confrontation?

An IID allows you to continue driving after a DWI charge

On behalf of Pennington, Cherne, Gaarder & Geiger Hagen, PLLC on Wednesday, December 26, 2018.

Minnesota has some harsh penalties for motorists convicted of driving while intoxicated, including driver's license suspension. When you absolutely have to drive to get around town, there is a solution: the ignition interlock device.

Penalties at a glance

3 disadvantages of DIY divorce

On behalf of Pennington, Cherne, Gaarder & Geiger Hagen, PLLC on Monday, November 19, 2018.

If you are trying to save money and time on your divorce, you may feel the temptation to go the DIY route. While a DIY divorce may sound simple, it can actually be more complex, costly and lengthy than a traditional divorce that involves a lawyer.

Divorcing without a lawyer is risky financially, legally and emotionally. Here are some reasons why you should avoid divorcing without legal representation.

Personal injury protection and your auto accident

On behalf of Pennington, Cherne, Gaarder & Geiger Hagen, PLLC on Sunday, October 21, 2018.

A motor vehicle accident can have devastating consequences, such as serious injuries that lead to extensive medical bills. Thankfully, there are certain measures in place to assist with this after an auto accident, such as personal injury protection.

In an effort to get the most out of a policy, there are a few things to understand.

Why a Facebook divorce is against your best interests

On behalf of Pennington, Cherne, Gaarder & Geiger Hagen, PLLC on Tuesday, September 25, 2018.

As a Minnesota resident, you likely love social media just as much as people across the country. In fact, your joy of keeping up with your family and friends on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, etc. may result in your spending a significant amount of time on your cellphone, laptop, computer and other electronic devices. Unfortunately for you, however, if you and your spouse are headed for divorce, this is one time when social media can become your enemy, not the electronic BFF you thought it was.

Posting anything at all on Facebook about your divorce or the goings on between you and your spouse during it puts you at great risk for revealing information that (s)he and his or her attorney may well use against you in court. Before you laugh off this warning as ridiculous, you should be aware that as long ago as 2010, two-thirds of American divorce attorneys admitted that they regularly monitored Facebook. Why? Because that was where they found the most damaging evidence against their clients’ spouses.

3 mistakes to avoid during divorce

On behalf of Pennington, Cherne, Gaarder & Geiger Hagen, PLLC on Friday, August 24, 2018.

If you are currently moving through a divorce, you most likely have many decisions to make. On top of the stress from these decisions, there is also the emotional component of the divorce, which can be as difficult, if not more difficult, as the technical aspects of the divorce process.

With so much financial and emotional pressure coming down on you from all sides during this time, it can be easy to make simple but costly mistakes. Here are three missteps you should take pains to avoid as you move through your divorce. Staying clear of these errors can help you in both the short-term and in your future post-divorce life.

You do not have to take an insurance company's first offer

On behalf of Pennington, Cherne, Gaarder & Geiger Hagen, PLLC on Tuesday, July 24, 2018.

Hundreds of car accidents happen every day in Minnesota. In 2015 alone, a total of 74,772 car crashes occurred, according to information from the Minnesota Department of Public Safety.

Some car crash cases are fairly straightforward because there are no injuries and minimal damage to the vehicles. However, in some cases, someone will experience a far more traumatic injury that could result in tens of thousands of dollars in medical expenses. In this instance, one of the most important things to remember during the settlement is to never take the insurance company's first offer.