A Conversation with Galit Fuller
Today I am meeting with Galit Fuller, who owns a State Farm Insurance Agency. Galit is also a mother in addition to owning her own business, however, she remains approachable and emphatic and is an asset to any person going through a divorce who needs help navigating the deep waters of insurance. Galit focuses her work on empowering family law clients to protect their families with smart and efficient insurance choices that maximize results and their desire to provide for their families in the instance of an emergency.
My mediation, collaborative, litigation and prenuptial agreement practice involves participants and clients who range from stay at home parents to small to medium sized business owners, or who have certain investment assets that involve issues beyond just family law. Because these issues are broader than just family law they require that I bring into the mediation or collaborative room (or as consulting attorneys and experts) additional professionals.
With close to 8 years of experience as a State Farm Insurance Agency owner, with an additional 5 years in the industry, Galit possesses a deep understanding of a family’s insurance needs. She is a professional I like to bring into the room to help optimize the experience for my family law clients.
Here are ten ways Galit can assist clients going through family law matters, first, of course, conducting a needs based assessment to determine the following:
Ensuring that the payments that are meant to be paid for child support and spousal support continue even if the paying spouse passes away.
Securing future college funds for children. A life insurance policy can safeguard a child’s education by ensuring funds are available for tuition even if a parent passes away.
Replacing lost income for a stay at home parent. Life insurance can provide income to maintain stability. Often it is thought that a stay at home parent does not need life insurance, but if this parent passes away then there will be added child care expenses, among others, that can become costly quickly.
Courts may require a life insurance policy as part of the divorce agreement to secure financial obligations.
She can assist with updating beneficiaries and policy ownership. After a divorce, it is crucial to update beneficiaries or transfer ownership of existing policies to avoid unintended payouts.
She can provide a fresh start with new life insurance. Parties going through a divorce may have changing life goals and life insurance is a program that needs to be updated to meet these goals.
Galit can assist with covering shared debts and liabilities. If a couple shares a mortgage, business loan or credit card debt then life insurance can prevent financial hardship for the surviving party.
Offering estate planning and legacy protection. Life insurance ensures assets go to children bypassing probate and reducing estate taxes. Payouts on a death claim are always tax free.
Helping business owners in divorce situations. If the divorcing couple owns a business together, the life insurance can fund a buy sell agreement protecting the future of the business.
Providing peace of mind during a stressful transition. Divorce is overwhelming and financial security is a major concern. Life insurance gives clients confidence in their long term stability.
Galit and I met through Business Network International (“BNI”), which has led me to innumerable talented people around the globe available to help family law clients with their matters. Galit’s approach to insurance is comprehensive and wholistic as well as accessible and affordable.
Ashley Andrews has practiced exclusively family law for close to 20 years. Her firm is set apart because she handles high-conflict and complex child custody matters, divorce cases with business owners, high-asset divorce cases, and domestic violence cases. She has an in-house forensic accountant who works on all her cases in some capacity. She has litigated family law cases all over California, including multi-week trials in the following counties: Los Angeles, San Bernardino, Orange County, and Riverside. While still taking the litigated family law cases, she is optimizing her practice by adding in mediation and collaborative divorce, a shift that she finds harder for the family law practitioner but better overall for the participants and their families. In her spare time, she is learning tennis, growing orchids, walking her Yorkshire terrier, frequenting the Norton Simon, and attending every Mosten Guthrie class she can fit into her schedule.
This material is provided for educational purposes only. Providing this information does not establish an attorney/client relationship. None of the information contained in this post should be acted upon without first consulting with an experienced family law mediator and attorney. Should you have questions about the content of this post, please arrange to discuss via a consultation.