J.K. Lasser Pro Guide to Tax and Financial Issues in Divorce [Hardcover]

Bruce L. Richman (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0471098884 | ISBN-13: 978-0471098881 | Publication Date: February 15, 2002 | Edition: 1

A straightforward and practical reference for the complicated tax and financial topics of divorce

Professionals specializing in the field must understand the financial and tax aspects of divorce in more detail than ever before-and the issues are more complicated than ever before. The J.K. Lasser Pro Guide to Tax and Financial Issues in Divorce is designed to arm professionals with the information they need to best serve their clients in dealing with the complex finances of divorce. Practical and accessible enough for nonprofessionals, the book also helps those worrying over their own divorce understand the topics they must deal with. Examples, guidelines, forms, tools, and checklists complement expert discussion of these issues and more:
* Valuing interests in closely held companies
* Finding the right lawyer and accountant for your divorce
* Negotiating the settlement
* Tax implications
* Research and investigation in the discovery phase
* Subpoenas and requests for documentation
* Marital versus nonmarital property
* Analyzing and determining one's true economic income
* Alimony and other maintenance payments
* Dissipation
* Mediation and collaborative law for divorce


Please visit our Web site at www.jklasser.com

Editorial Reviews

From the Inside Flap

Guide to tax and financial issues in divorce

Divorce is a complicated and frustrating ordeal that forces people to honestly assess their lifestyles, needs, and real financial situations. It involves financial issues and guidelines that are often so complicated that they confuse even those accounting legal professionals who specialize in the area. The J.K. Lasser Pro Guide to Tax and Financial Issues in Divorce simplifies the process and serves both as a professional reference for lawyers, mediators, accountants, therapists, and valuation specialists and as a helpful guide for ordinary people facing a divorce.

The J.K. Lasser Pro Guide to Tax and Financial Issues in Divorce includes easy-to-follow tools, checklists, forms, and overviews of tax, financial, and valuation concepts that meet the needs of professionals giving advice and laypersons going through a divorce. The detailed discussions of all the vital financial, tax, and valuation topics included here provide the professional advice needed to safeguard a client’s financial well-being and make the divorce process as quick and painless as possible. Practical and simple enough for nonprofessionals, it helps clients and attorneys understand these financial issues and find the right professionals to assist them.

From the discovery phase to the final signatures, every tax and financial topic in divorce is included:

• Mediation and collaborative divorce
• Stock options
• Taxation of financial support
• Property transfers in divorce
• Filing status
• Allocation of itemized deductions
• Allocation of tax-related carryovers
• Allocation of estimated tax payments and tax refunds
• Innocent spouse rules, child care credits, and adoption credits
• Valuation of closely held businesses
• Business valuation approaches and standards

As a professional resource for anyone who specializes in the area or as a helpful reference for dealing with the financial issues arising from your own divorce, the J.K. Lasser Pro Guide to Tax and Financial Issues in Divorce offers the sensible, balanced guidance you need.

From the Back Cover

A straightforward and practical reference for the complicated tax and financial topics of divorce

Professionals specializing in the field must understand the financial and tax aspects of divorce in more detail than ever before–and the issues are more complicated than ever before. The J.K. Lasser Pro Guide to Tax and Financial Issues in Divorce is designed to arm professionals with the information they need to best serve their clients in dealing with the complex finances of divorce. Practical and accessible enough for nonprofessionals, the book also helps those worrying over their own divorce understand the topics they must deal with. Examples, guidelines, forms, tools, and checklists complement expert discussion of these issues and more:

• Valuing interests in closely held companies
• Finding the right lawyer and accountant for your divorce
• Negotiating the settlement
• Tax implications
• Research and investigation in the discovery phase
• Subpoenas and requests for documentation
• Marital versus nonmarital property
• Analyzing and determining one’s true economic income
• Alimony and other maintenance payments
• Dissipation
• Mediation and collaborative law for divorce

Please visit our Web site at www.jklasser.com

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 400 pages
• Publisher: Wiley; 1 edition (February 15, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0471098884
• ISBN-13: 978-0471098881
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6.5 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,900,332 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Largely business valuation, with typos, September 23, 2002

By 

J. M. Swisher "technical writer" (Austin, TX USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: J.K. Lasser Pro Guide to Tax and Financial Issues in Divorce (Hardcover)

Nearly half this book is devoted to valuation of businesses for divorce purposes. If you or your spouse don't own a business, you may be better off with a different guide to divorce finance and taxes. Why spend money on book you'll only use half of?

This book is clearly designed for accountants and tax attorneys. While a layperson might find some of the checklists and so on helpful, there is also a lot of verbiage about sections of the tax code, and terminology a layperson would need to look up in the glossary. (Extra star for having a glossary, though!) I think there is a limit to how much a topic like this can be "simplified" --- it is irreducibly complex.

I was dismayed to see the number of editing errors in the book, especially given the high list price. Some of them are merely annoying, such as missing words or wrong word forms that make a sentence ungrammatical. However, some errors affect the content. In one paragraph about retirement plans, the first sentence was about "defined contribution plans"; the next sentence also started with "defined contribution plans" when it should have said "defined benefit plans". Someone who didn't already know better could be led astray by this error.

My advice: be forewarned that this book is highly technical, and buy it used unless you are a divorce professional who can write off the expense.

My rating: 3 stars, plus an extra star for the glossary

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Comprehensive, Clear, Coverage, February 26, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: J.K. Lasser Pro Guide to Tax and Financial Issues in Divorce (Hardcover)

As a financial consultant with many clients who are going through or just been through a divorce, it is extremely important to have a reference book that provides complete information on all of the complex issues relating to this subject. This book does all of this and more. Not only do I intend to keep a copy in my office for reference, but I think this book provides such good information in easy to understand language that I intend to recommend it to my clients too. An excellent resource.

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Innovative, March 4, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: J.K. Lasser Pro Guide to Tax and Financial Issues in Divorce (Hardcover)

This book was very direct and practical. I found the easy-to-follow tools, checklists, work programs, flow charts, forms to be very helpful. This book makes me feel much more confident to help my clients.