If your spouse asked for a divorce, your first thought may have been that you need to protect your financial assets. Maybe the two of you have been using a shared bank account for years. But you can see that you’re now going to have to divide your assets between the two of you, which probably means closing down that shared account.
But how do you do it? It’s important not to make it appear that you’re trying to take those assets for yourself or hide assets from your ex. After all, they also have a right to the money in that account and it needs to be divided properly.
What regulations does the institution have?
To do this, the key is to follow all of the regulations that are established by your financial institution. Much of the time, for instance, they will mandate that both people have to come in together to close the account in person. They won’t let you do it on your own – and they won’t let your spouse do it alone, either – to prevent one person from taking the full balance of the funds without the other person’s knowledge.
If you do this in the correct way, you can avoid complications, and it is certainly a positive move as you get closer to divorce. The next step may be to open a bank account under your name, where you can deposit your portion of the funds from the shared bank account account and direct all future payments from your employer.
The financial side of divorce can get complicated, and this is just one example. Carefully look into all of your legal options as you go through this process.