An old saying posits that “When it rains, it pours.” Sometimes in life, that can mean having to deal with multiple traumatic events — like your divorce and a relative’s grave illness — at the same time. Whatever the secondary emergency may be, you should take care when it comes to spending money during the pendency of your divorce case, even if it is for something as important as paying for care for a close loved one. What you can and cannot do will depend on multiple factors, like what court orders you’re under and whether the funds you seek to spend are marital or non-marital. One way to enhance your odds of avoiding troubles down the road regarding those expenses is to consult an experienced Maryland divorce lawyer before you act.
A recent divorce dispute from Anne Arundel County is a stark reminder of this notion. The husband filed for divorce in late 2019. In early January 2020, the trial judge issued an “Injunction to Prevent Dissipation of Assets.” That injunction barred the husband from “disposing of… any of the property alleged to be marital property or property acquired during the separation.”
In late 2021, the husband emptied the entire $72,800 balance of his Thrift Savings Plan and put the net proceeds (after penalties and taxes) of $56,800 into his credit union account. The husband eventually spent all of those proceeds to support his father in Nigeria, who had stage IV cancer. The couple also had a Lexus vehicle that the husband sold during the divorce for $18,600, of which the wife received $0.