After same-sex marriages were legalized, you may have considered getting married right away. There are some things you should think about though, and you may want to discuss any concerns with your attorney before you take the plunge and get married or work with your attorney to get a divorce.
Before you enter into a marriage, remember that you’ll now be treated the same as any other married couple. This means that a prenuptial agreement might be a good idea. Assets gained or received during your marriage may be split in a divorce when you divide your property, if it ever comes to a time when your marriage fails. Having this agreement in place will save you a large amount of the stress and anxiety that comes with a divorce.
Alimony is another thing to consider. Your alimony payments would only be based on the length of your marriage, not on the length of time you’ve been living with your spouse. So, since same-sex marriages haven’t been legal in all states, you could find that your past won’t be recognized in Florida. Because of that, you would only receive alimony for the time you were married. The key in this kind of situation is to discuss what you would do in the case of a divorce and have an alimony agreement placed into a prenuptial agreement before you marry.
Same-sex adoption was previously banned, but now it’s legal. Remember that you can now adopt the child and both you and your partner can be parents and guardians. In a divorce, the child will still have his or her time split between you, but his or her best wishes will be the primary focus, like in any other divorce case.
Source: Daily Business Review, “What Are Considerations for Same-Sex Couples After Marriage Legalization?,” Mitchell K. Karpf, Oct. 27, 2015
