Technically, there is no specific age that qualifies as a gray divorce. The term just indicates that couples are relatively older. For instance, someone getting divorced in their 50s or 60s may say that they are going through a gray divorce, whereas someone who is getting divorced in their 30s or 40s would not.
In some ways, a gray divorce can actually be more complex – and it’s happening more and more often, as gray divorce has been on the rise in recent years. It’s important to understand what legal steps to take as you navigate this process.
Complex asset division
The reason for complications in a gray divorce generally revolves around assets. For instance, if a couple got divorced in their 20s with a young child, their main focus would likely just be on child custody rights. They may not own that many assets, but they want to be involved in the child’s life.
But for a couple in their 60s, they have a lot more questions to ask about how they should split up their assets. Perhaps they have retirement funds, and they have been saving together, so they need to know how to divide those accounts so that they can both retire in the near future. They may own homes, businesses and other major assets. They may have significant amounts of shared debt, which also has to be divided if they took it out together.
So, while older couples do avoid the common conflicts that come along with child custody issues, this does not mean that the divorce will be simple. It is crucial for them to carefully consider all of their legal options and the steps they can take at this time.
