Joint Bank Accounts with marriage # 2

Many people have asked me if hubby and I have joint bank accounts. The answer is this "NO WAY!".. Why you ask?

First off I have always been the independant kind. I have never had joint anything.. until recently when we purchased a home. And let me tell you, I am still sweating over that.

The reason I am dead set against joint bank accounts when in a 2nd, 3rd, or 4th marriage (you get the picture) is the dreaded "ex". If one exists and likes to live out of other people's pockets then avoid joint anything if at all possible.

I can only comment on the Canadian Family Court System as that is where my many yrs of experience lie. And the rules are pretty simple - when you have a case that goes to court, for any reason, you must provide statements of income. This includes any assets, bank accounts,etc. Though the papers state to only add your share of these assets, the judge may see it differently. All the ex has to do is open his/her mouth and raise suspicion... "gee but his house is worth far more than that.." "there is no way his car is only worth $20k". Though you may try to defend yourself and state that you are listing only your portion of ownership it can quickly turn on you. The judge can order full disclosure and view all the assets as yours entirely. Is that fair and just? Certainly not, but it does happen. And now you look like you are living high on the hog. Any expenses your spouse has are ignored. It is a very one-sided view of how you truly live.

And when it does, chances are that is when dear old ex pulls out the big guns: "Undue Hardship".

Undue Hardship is when one person claims they cannot financially support their family with the support rec'd or they cannot pay support and still maintain any decent standard of living. Usually the courts want to see evidence of this first before opening up a can of worms but many times they will simply order a comparison of living assessment. And this is where the stepparent or new partner has to declare their income. Panicking yet?

Now your joint incomes are used against ex's income (joint if they have managed to hook another poor fool) and the judge decides if there needs to be an adjustment.

So be forewarned, avoid joint bank accounts whenever possible. Keep yourself out of it . Keep things simple! In fact, I highly caution against getting married again altogether. You can usually play the common-law game for awhile before any judge will dare bring you into it. They seem to view a 2nd marriage as something far more concrete. How ironic is that?