Mississippi Family Law Blog

Common tax issues in a divorce

As a Mississippi divorce lawyer, I've seen my share of tax issues arise during a divorce. Three common tax issues are: whether alimony payments are taxable, whether child support payments are taxable, and which spouse gets to takes the tax exemption for the children.

With regard to alimony, the Internal Revenue Service states that alimony "is a payment to or for a spouse or former spouse under a divorce or separation instrument." To be alimony, certain requirements must be met and the rules are different for documents executed after 1984 and those executed before. However, generally alimony payments are deductible from your gross income for those making alimony payments and generally are included in the gross income of a person receiving alimony payments. Again, a word of caution. You must determine whether you are paying or receiving alimony as defined by the Internal Revenue Service. Additionally, if you are receiving alimony, you may need to make estimated tax payments as no tax is withheld from alimony payments. Again, a qualified tax professional can answer these questions.

Continue reading "Common tax pitfalls in a divorce" »

Posted by Robert Kisselburgh | Permalink | Email This Post

Posted In: Divorce

Bookmark:

Some tips for the tax season

As CPAs, accountants, and others are burning the midnight oil preparing tax returns, a recent article provides some helpful tips for those undergoing a divorce or recently divorced.

In my next post, I will discuss some common tax problems in a divorce.

Posted by Robert Kisselburgh | Permalink | Email This Post

Posted In: Alimony , Child Support , Divorce

Bookmark:

Covenant Marriage re-introduced in new Senate amendment

During this legislative session, the idea of a new form of marriage, “covenant marriage,” was introduced. In the “covenant marriage,” the couple agrees to undergo premartial counseling before applying for a marriage license. O.K., not a bad idea so far. But here is the kicker. By entering into a “covenant marriage,” you agree to modify your rights to get divorced.

As currently proposed, if you entered into a covenant marriage and then later chose to divorce, your complaint for divorce must be on file for one year before you can get divorced as opposed to the normal sixty-day waiting period. Further, during this one-year waiting period, you and your spouse are required to attend marriage counseling in an attempt to resurrect your marriage. Again, nothing wrong with marriage counseling as long as both parties believe there is a chance to make their marriage survive. The problem is forcing couples to undergo one-year of marriage counseling before they divorce.

Continue reading "Covenant Marriage not yet dead in Mississippi Legislature" »

Posted by Robert Kisselburgh | Permalink | Email This Post

Posted In: Family Law News , Marriage

Bookmark:

Wife granted annulment when husband turned out to be a woman

Here is an story that will leave you with more questions than answers. A man and wife (or so they thought) were married for seven years before getting divorced. Then the wife looked through an old high school yearbook and discovered that her "ex-husband" was a woman in high school. The woman went back to court and was granted an annulment of the marriage. The question remains--how were they married seven years without the wife figuring out her partner was not a man? Especially since the "ex-husband" was still physically a female?

Posted by Robert Kisselburgh | Permalink | Email This Post

Posted In: Legal News

Bookmark:

Federal officials will monitor the elections today in Madison County, Mississippi

According to CNN, Madison County is one of three counties where Justice Department officials will monitor voting today given past irregularities. Wonder if it has anything to do with the more than 10,000 names purged from the voter rolls last week by one election commissioner, although all the names were restored for today's election? Read here for that story.

I hope everyone will exercise their right to vote today.

Posted by Robert Kisselburgh | Permalink | Email This Post

Posted In: Hodgepodge

Bookmark:

A professional poker player who makes around $400,000 a year was jailed for failing to pay $160,000 in back child support. According to the article, felony arrest warrants were issued in Wisconsin for the man who lives and works in Las Vegas, Nevada. The man previously appealed a trial court's order which increased his monthly child support from $1,500 to $4,000 a month, but the appellate court denied his appeal finding that he made $400,000 a year which justified the increase. It appears he ignored the order, but Wisconsin officials pursued the case. It may be sometime before he is back at the poker table.

Posted by Robert Kisselburgh | Permalink | Email This Post

Posted In: Child Support

Bookmark:

Dividing Retirement Benefits in a Mississippi divorce

Continuing on with my previous post on this subject, the second step for the chancellor in dividing retirement benefits in a Mississippi divorce is valuing the assets. How much are the retirement benefits worth? With a defined contribution plan, this is relatively easy as you know how much money is in the account at the valuation date or you should be able to get that information from the plan administrator. However, what if some of the benefits benefits (the employer's contribution) are not vested (that is, the employee is entitled to at the time) and are those benefits valued the same? A more difficult proposition is if the employee's retirement benefits are a defined benefit plan. In this case, it will require a formula to calculate the value of the benefits earned during the marriage. This calculation can be complex and can require the assistance of a professional.

The final step for the chancellor is how to divide the retirement benefits. This falls back to the analysis discussed in earlier post regarding the division of marital property in a Mississippi divorce.

A review of these posts regarding dividing retirement benefits in a Mississippi divorce should make it apparent that this is not a job people should attempt on their own. While you may be able to work out the basic framework for dividing the retirement benefits, you should seek the advice of a divorce attorney to protect yourself against a potential minefield.

Posted by Robert Kisselburgh | Permalink | Email This Post

Posted In: Divorce , Property Division

Bookmark:

If spouses are unable to agree on how to divide retirement benefits in a Mississippi divorce, then the job falls to the chancellor. Retirement benefits are no different than other property in a divorce. Essentially, there are three steps.

• Determine the character of the property;


• Determine the value of the property; and


• Determine how to divide the property.

Let's take each of these steps separately.

Continue reading "How the Mississippi judge divides the retirement nest egg" »

Posted by Robert Kisselburgh | Permalink | Email This Post

Posted In: Divorce , Property Division

Bookmark:

Kisselburgh Law Firm is moving to Ridgeland, Mississippi

The boxes are packed, the movers have arrived, and the truck is loaded--we are moving. Starting tomorrow, Monday, March 3rd, our new office is in Ridgeland, Mississippi. We are conveniently located off I-55, south of the new Ridgeland mall, just down Highland Colony Parkway. You can find directions to our office on the "Contact Us" page and we will update it soon with a map once Google and Mapquest get their act together by adding our street.

Posted by Robert Kisselburgh | Permalink | Email This Post

Posted In: Hodgepodge

Bookmark: