“The accountants, attorneys, and financial advisors we spoke with at the AICPA conference were looking for educational opportunities to differentiate themselves from their peers,” IDFA General Manager Jessica Diggs said, adding, “They all wanted to be better prepared to deal with the legal and financial intricacies of pre-divorce financial planning to better serve their clients.”
According to U.S. Census Bureau data, the number of Americans getting divorced rose for the third year in a row to about 2.4 million in 2012, the last year of available data. In every divorce, unique issues arise related to finance; for example, statistics point to a woman’s per capita household income dropping as much as 15 percent after a divorce. Studies by the Institute for Women’s Policy Research in Washington, D.C. show divorced women more likely to be working or seeking jobs because of economic necessity than married women, in addition to carrying a greater burden of child care costs.
The IDFA validates candidates who have successfully passed the CDFA exam, consisting of four separate modules, each concluding with a two-hour, multiple-choice test. The CDFA designation must be renewed annually, with designees reporting 15 divorce-related continuing education hours every two years.
Presenting the latest in estate planning, investment planning, retirement planning, and insurance planning, the AICPA Advanced Personal Financial Planning Conference also provided invaluable networking opportunities, allowing attendees to share ideas, best practices and knowledge with peers, expert speakers and exhibitors. Presentations at the Conference included topics such as how to increase the after-tax rates of returns; commodity investing; risk mitigation trends; succession planning; and estate, income and net investments.
The IDFA regularly shares its expertise in the highly specialized arena of divorce finances at industry events such as AICPA conferences, participating as sponsors and exhibitors in addition to providing thought leadership on various panels and roundtables.
In May, the IDFA will be hosting the Divorce Professional’s National Conference in New Orleans, providing cutting-edge strategies, innovative ideas, best practices, and key updates on evolving issues including pension strategies, cross-examination techniques, and changes in same-sex divorce. Registration for the event is now open, and sponsorship opportunities are available; for more information visit www.institutedfa.com/2015nationalconference.php.
Founded in 1993, IDFA provides specialized training to accounting, financial, and legal professionals in the field of pre-divorce financial planning. Over the years, the organization has certified more than 5,000 professionals in the U.S. and Canada as CDFA professionals.
For more information, visit www.institutedfa.com.
About IDFA
The Institute for Divorce Financial Analysts (IDFA) is dedicated to the certification, education and promotion of the use of financial professionals in the divorce arena. The IDFA validates candidates who have successfully passed examination to become a Certified Divorce Financial Analyst® (CDFA™), the most established and recognized designation in financial planning for divorce since 1993. The IDFA falls under the umbrella of CertiTrek (formerly The Certification Commission), raising the bar and setting a new standard for certification companies across an array of industry sectors from healthcare and legal practice to IT and financial services. For more information on IDFA visit www.institutedfa.com.
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