Your attorney handles the law. Someone has to handle the money — all of it, in one picture.
If you are getting divorced and your attorney doesn't handle the financial planning side, the person to talk to is a financial planner who works on divorce. That planner builds the full money picture before you sign: every account, debt and tax consequence, what each settlement option is worth after tax, and how you will live on the other side. Dr. Pat Pachciarz® and The Pinnacle Group are that coordination layer, working alongside your divorce attorney and CPA. We are based in Aurora, Illinois, meet in person with clients from Aurora, Naperville and Oswego, and work virtually.
One household becomes two on roughly the same income. Before you agree to anything, you need a monthly budget for your new life, including housing, health insurance, taxes and childcare, and a clear view of how support and your share of assets cover it.
Private employer plans like 401(k)s and company pensions are divided with a QDRO. Illinois public pensions, such as TRS, SURS, SERS and IMRF, can't accept a QDRO; they need a QILDRO entered by an Illinois court. IRAs need neither: they move by a transfer incident to divorce. Our homepage FAQ explains QDROs, QILDROs and splitting retirement accounts in detail.
Balances aren't equal values. A dollar in a traditional 401(k) still owes income tax; a dollar in a Roth or in cash doesn't. We compare them after tax before you trade one for another.
Transfers between spouses incident to divorce are generally not taxable, and the cost basis moves with the asset. Two brokerage accounts with the same balance can carry very different future tax bills. Make sure you also keep enough cash to live on: a settlement heavy in retirement money and home equity can leave you short of spendable money.
Keeping the house is often an emotional decision with long financial consequences. Can you refinance it in your name alone? Can you afford the payment, taxes, insurance and repairs on your post-divorce budget? What happens to the capital gain when you eventually sell? We model keeping, selling and buying out side by side.
Your filing status for the whole year depends on whether you're divorced on December 31. Spousal maintenance under agreements made after 2018 is neither deductible for the payer nor taxable to the recipient, and Illinois follows the federal treatment. We work with your CPA on filing status, who claims the children, and the tax cost of each asset.
Illinois law revokes provisions for a former spouse in your will and in a revocable trust after a divorce judgment, unless the documents or the judgment say otherwise. But beneficiary forms on employer retirement plans and many policies are governed differently, so update every form yourself. If support depends on your ex's income, ask your attorney how it will be secured if something happens to them. Health coverage and new powers of attorney belong on the same list.
If your marriage lasted at least 10 years, you are 62 or older and unmarried, you may be able to claim benefits on your ex-spouse's record without reducing theirs. Our homepage FAQ covers collecting on an ex-spouse's record.
Your divorce decree doesn't bind your creditors. If a joint card is assigned to your ex but your name is still on it, the lender can still come to you. Close or refinance joint debt, build credit in your own name, and then build a plan for retirement and investments you control.
Your divorce attorney protects your legal rights and drafts the orders. Your CPA files your returns. We coordinate the financial side so everyone negotiates from the same numbers, and we stay with you after the decree. We don't give legal advice or represent you in court.
Already reading our 12 most common divorce money questions? The questions below go further.
A financial planner who works on divorce. That person inventories your assets and debts, compares settlement options after tax, and builds your post-divorce budget, while your attorney handles the legal strategy. Many people use both, and the two work together.
Three years of tax returns, recent pay stubs, statements for every bank, investment and retirement account, pension statements, mortgage and loan statements, insurance policies and beneficiary forms, and any will, trust or prenuptial agreement.
Compare it in after-tax dollars and over time, not by account balances on the day you sign. A settlement can look equal and still leave one spouse with most of the future tax bill or too little cash to live on.
No. A traditional 401(k) still owes income tax, a Roth usually doesn't, and a brokerage account carries capital gains based on its cost basis. Home equity isn't spendable until you sell or borrow. Equal balances can be very unequal values.
For agreements made after 2018, maintenance isn't taxable to the person who receives it or deductible for the person who pays it, and Illinois follows the federal rule. Agreements made before 2019 can follow the old rules.
Your status for the whole year depends on whether you're divorced on December 31. If you're still married then, you choose married filing jointly or separately; filing jointly makes both spouses responsible for the whole tax. Some separated parents qualify for head of household. Decide with your CPA.
Transfer the investments in kind rather than selling them. Transfers between spouses incident to divorce are generally not taxable, and the cost basis moves with each holding, so know the basis of what you're receiving before you agree.
Ask your attorney whether the judgment should require coverage, such as a policy that names you or a trust for the children, for as long as support is owed, and confirm it is actually in force. We check that it fits the rest of your plan.
Yes, update them. Illinois law revokes provisions for a former spouse in a will and in a revocable trust after the judgment unless the documents say otherwise, but your powers of attorney, guardianship choices and beneficiary forms still need your attention.
Start with what you'll actually spend each month in your new life: housing, health insurance, taxes, childcare, transportation and savings. Then match it against your income, support and the cash your settlement leaves you. Do this before you sign, not after.
Yes. We're based in Aurora, Illinois, and meet in person with clients from Aurora, Naperville and Oswego. We also meet virtually.
We explicitly show you our value, in writing, before you hire us. If we can't find it or explicitly show you, you don't pay. Before any engagement, we show you in writing the value we found for you that you didn't know existed. There are several ways to work with us and pay, chosen around what you need from DAITT®.
We are based in Aurora, Illinois, and meet in person with clients from Aurora, Naperville and Oswego. Meetings are also available virtually. Book a Clarity & Discovery Session.
This page is education, not legal, tax or investment advice. Your divorce attorney advises you on the law and drafts court orders; your CPA prepares your returns. We coordinate the financial plan around them. Rules change; confirm your own situation before acting.
Reviewed by Dr. Pat Pachciarz®, The Pinnacle Group. Last reviewed October 3, 2026. Figures change; we re-check them against the sources above.