Paul Mendelsohn, CPA: Taxes and a High-Conflict Divorce

Taxes do not pause for a divorce, and the year everything comes apart is often the year the numbers stop adding up. Paul Mendelsohn, a CPA in New Jersey, joins Lisa to explain what happens to your taxes when a marriage ends, starting with a problem people rarely see coming: the accountant a couple shared for years cannot keep representing both of them.Paul Mendelsohn practices as a sole-practitioner CPA, working with individuals and small businesses around the country, and much of his value here is knowing when a tax question has crossed into territory that needs a forensic accountant or a divorce attorney. His caution comes back to self-preservation: you sign the returns, so the goal is understanding them before you sign, not untangling them years later.Paul and Lisa work through the tools and the traps. How a spouse underreports income through a business or overstates expenses, and why the return alone will never show income that was never reported. Why filing separately during a divorce keeps you off the hook for your spouse's figures. What recourse you have when a CPA signs off on numbers with no documents behind them. And how to put yourself on record with the IRS when your ex claims a child they were not entitled to.They also cover the longer arc. A qualified domestic relations order, or QDRO, that divides a retirement account without a taxable distribution, and Paul's advice to move that money once it is yours rather than let a plan lose track of you. Innocent-spouse relief for old joint returns. Head-of-household status and what it changes about your deduction and your brackets. And a piece of good news for someone leaving a long marriage: after ten years, and as long as you have not remarried, you can claim on an ex's Social Security without needing their sign-off.As always, this is strategic education, not legal or mental-health advice for your specific situation.🎓 What you'll learnWhy one accountant cannot represent both spouses once a divorce starts, and when that offer is a warning signFiling jointly versus separately mid-divorce, and why joint puts you on the hook for their numbersHow hidden or underreported income shows up, and when a forensic accountant is worth the moneyWhat to do when your ex claims the kids on their taxes before you fileInnocent-spouse relief: your options on returns you signed without understanding themConfidential versus privileged: what a CPA must hand over under subpoena, and what an attorney doesn'tHow a QDRO divides a 401(k) or IRA without creating a taxable distributionClaiming on an ex's Social Security after a marriage of at least ten years⏱️ Chapters 0:00 Intro 1:00 Why taxes matter in a high-conflict divorce 3:00 One accountant, two spouses: the conflict of interest 7:00 Getting years of returns, and a spouse who won't file 9:00 Unreported income and the forensic accountant 13:00 Confidential vs. privileged, and fraud on the returns 17:00 Who files first, and claiming the kids 20:00 Filing jointly vs. separately, and your credit 23:00 Innocent-spouse relief and the e-file sign-off 29:00 Head of household, and Social Security after divorce 33:00 QDROs, retirement accounts, and what not to do mid-divorceKeep going 💜 Book a free 30-minute discovery call and we'll help you map your next steps: https://beentheregotout.com/call 📘 Been There Got Out: Toxic Relationships, High-Conflict Divorce, and How to Stay Sane Under Insane Circumstances — https://www.amazon.com/dp/194627495X 📘 Been There Got Out: When Your Ex Turns the Kids Against You (our parental-alienation book) — https://www.amazon.com/dp/1967674183 🔗 Paul N. Mendelsohn, CPA: https://mendelsohncpa.com/About Been There Got Out Chris Barry and Lisa Johnson are high-conflict divorce, custody, and co-parenting strategists, and the founders of Been There Got Out. They know these cases from the inside: both have successfully represented themselves in family court. Few attorneys have a playbook for a case like this — Chris and Lisa write yours with you, so you and your kids can get through it as unscathed as possible.