Welcome to Long Island Divorce Tips

When you decide that you are going to get divorced or your spouse serves you with the news, here are some tips and pointers you will want to consider to protect yourself:

-Get a new email account and do not tell your spouse. I recommend Gmail because you can store documents on their site.

-We recommend keeping all divorce and sensitive documents off you home computer. We recommend that you change your password frequently. Make the passwords random. Do not use anything that your spouse could guess. Give the security questions to someone you trust.
Buy a memory stick to store any valuable documents or correspondence. These are very cheap now and it is very important that you keep your documents off you home computer and in a safe place.

-Get a voice recorder. This can be very helpful. Please consult your attorney regarding the laws on regarding conversations. You are legally allowed to record any conversation you are part of without disclosing to any other party that you are doing so. It is a felony if you record a conversation that you are not part of.

-Change your credit card passwords. Do not use your real “mother’s maiden name.” Your spouse knows the answers. Make up new ones.

-Get a safe deposit box or lockbox. Do not leave any documentation around the house.

-Get a new cell phone or have your spouse removed from your bill.
WARNING: There are devices that can lift text messages from a cell phone even after they have been erased. DO NOT leave your phone accessible to your spouse.

-Create a log or diary and write everything down!! I know this is tedious, but very helpful. It really only takes a few minutes a day. Include things like what happened during the day, how are your kids doing, what time did your spouse come home, who did what work around the house?

-Get a separate bank account and make sure you move your direct deposit. Determine what percentage of your income is the total income and only pay that portion of the bills.

-If there is ANY physical altercation, file a police report. If you take pictures, have the police do it. You might need to show history and what is considered minor, could lead to major altercations. You want EVERYTHING officially documented.

-Send all text messages to your new email account. Remember, the more documentation, the better.

-If you verbally agree to something, confirm it with an email