Remarriage After Divorce In Arizona

In the United States, the average age at which someone gets their first divorce is 30 years old. With the average age of divorce being pushed in the younger direction, it’s no surprise that more people get remarried now than ever. You may feel like you know all there is to know about getting married in Arizona if you’ve already been divorced. However, depending on your unique circumstances, there could be special considerations to keep in mind for your second (or subsequent) marriage. If you have questions about divorce, a second marriage, or any other family law matter in Arizona, call our firm for your free phone consultation at 480-680-9126.

Does Remarriage Affect My Support Payments Going Forward?

Support payments could be a huge part of your budget after a divorce. One spouse may be entitled to spousal maintenance after marriage, and there may also be a child support obligation if the couple has minor children together. Your support payments could be crucial to your family’s livelihood, which is why they can be so strictly enforced by the court. If you pay support, it’s probably a substantial portion of your income. Additionally, failure to pay can have disastrous consequences. Unpaid support will accrue interest, and if it builds up for too long, the recipient can ask the court for more severe consequences. Oftentimes, the court will place a garnishment on the former spouse’s wages to make sure they pay their spousal and child support. The limits for a back child support wage garnishment in Arizona are extremely high- up to 65% if the parent has no other dependents and is more than 12 weeks behind. The state will suspend the driver’s license of a parent who falls too far behind on child support and engage in even more strict methods of enforcement.

If a spouse who receives spousal support gets remarried, the spousal support terminates. However, the reverse does not apply. If a spouse who pays spousal support gets remarried, they still need to pay spousal support to their ex per court orders. Child support does not terminate due to either parent’s remarriage. Support obligations may change if the spouse who pays support gets remarried.

Changing Documentation

Marrying for a second time could mean you need to make changes to much of your important paperwork, including your life insurance policy and estate plan. Perhaps your ex is still listed on these documents. Maybe your parents, siblings, adult children, or other relatives have replaced your ex on these documents. If you are getting remarried, you may want to make some amendments that make it clear what your intentions are for your new spouse if the worst were ever to occur. This can eliminate confusion if there are important decisions to be made and your documents were created before you married your new spouse. Some of the documents you may need to amend after a remarriage include:

• Testament
• Powers of attorney
• Advanced Health Care Directives
• Trusts
• Life insurance policy
• Property deeds/rental leases

Review Arizona Community Property

If you’ve already been divorced at least once in Arizona, you’re probably fairly familiar with the concept of community property. Before marrying again, you should inventory your assets to determine what is your separate property, and what will be community property going forward. If you pay a mortgage or an auto loan with your income, any equity gained after the wedding will become a community property share. Everything paid off before the wedding will remain your separate property. So will property you acquire at any point through gift or inheritance? However, you should be aware of how commingling works and how it could transfer the status of your separate property.

For the most part, a new marriage shouldn’t affect how your parenting plan and legal custody arrangement work. Some parents will work certain rules about new relationships into their custody agreements. For example, the parenting plan may require that each parent date a partner for a certain amount of time before introducing them to the children, or the other parent must be introduced to a new partner before they take on a caregiver role for the child. Absent these provisions, there shouldn’t be a legal issue with one parent remarrying a new spouse.

Just because remarriage shouldn’t affect custody doesn’t mean it absolutely won’t. Custody can be modified for non-emergency purposes if at least 12 months have passed since the last orders were issued. If your child has a tumultuous relationship with your new partner, it could be one of the several factors considered in a child custody modification hearing. You can find Arizona’s child custody factors in A.R.S. § 25-403. The second factor listed in this statute is the “interaction and interrelationship of the child with the child’s parent or parents, the child’s siblings, and any other person who may significantly affect the child’s best interest.” A parent’s new spouse could significantly affect a child’s best interest in the eyes of an Arizona family law judge. Other factors listed in sections 25-403 could also be affected by remarriage.  To discuss how these factors interact with your specific situation, call to schedule your free consultation at 480-680-9126.

If one or both parents must take alcohol testing as part of their custody orders, they can use Soberlink as a choice in alcohol monitoring providers. A parent can be required to test through Soberlink in a variety of schedules. Some parents may only need to test when they have parenting time with the child, while others may be required to test every single day. It will all depend on the parenting plan, and other factors specific to their case. The court and the other parent will be alerted if a parent fails their Soberlink test.

Just like everything in the family law system, sobriety testing doesn’t come free. Alcohol testing will cost more for a parent who requires daily testing than a parent who only requires testing during scheduled parenting time. Parenting time-only plans cost anywhere from $129 to $229 per month. Daily testing starts at $169 per month but can cost as much as $259 per month. Daily testing can require 2-3 tests per day. The first test should be taken upon waking and the last test of the day should be taken before going to sleep.

Contact Our Experienced Arizona Lawyers For Your Family Law Needs

If you’ve been divorced before, you know just how stressful the process can be it might even be cause for apprehension for your next relationship. We can help you determine your goals and the best way to legally execute them. You may have family law issues to clear up with your ex, as well as changes to make to your estate plan to include your new spouse. Our AZ Family Law Lawyers offer family law and estate planning services so that we can be your one-stop shop. Make sure your family is taken care of, no matter what life throws your way. To get started with your free phone consultation, contact our office to get scheduled at 480-680-9126.