When a married couple decides to call it quits, even with the best of intentions, stress can still rear its ugly head. Even if the decision to divorce is mutual, when it comes time to make decisions about, custody, dividing assets or discussions of money in general, emotions tend to escalate -- creating animosity toward the other spouse.

While there are no shortages of suggestions in the "what to do" or "not to do" lists, spouses can save themselves frustration by taking the right steps to protect their money, property and other assets. By adequately protecting assets, a spouse can be left with one less question mark heading into the divorce process.

Upon deciding to divorce, there are a number of measures each spouse can immediately take in order to put shields over their personal finances.

One of the first moves to make if you are currently sharing a checking account with your soon-to-be ex-spouse is to open up a new bank account. This starts with splitting up joint funds. In the meantime, each spouse has full access to these accounts, which means they can spitefully clean out the account and take the money for him or herself. While instantly establishing your own bank account might indicate to the other spouse that you do not trust them, the move is well worth the risk. Keeping a joint bank account could jeopardize a good chunk of your fortune.

Similarly, a spouse will want to separate their credit lines. If the other spouse decides to rack up bills and not pay them, it could ding your otherwise flawless credit score. Spouses will also need to sit down and talk about existing debt and who will take them over. There are a number of actions spouses can take in order to reassign joint debt to the other account holder, such as; opening up a new credit card and transferring the balance of the joint card to a new card. Furthermore, if you transfer assets like a vehicle or home to the other spouse, make sure you take your name off the loan for it. You do not want to be on the hook for a bill that someone else is responsible to pay.

Also be mindful of your insurance policy. A divorce might leave one spouse without insurance coverage. This could spell disaster in the event of an emergency.

Finally, a divorce will change an individual's tax status to single, opening him or her up for new deductions and other new criteria. When that time comes it is important to learn the ins and outs of this new filing status by consulting a tax advisor.

Source: Money Talks News, "4 steps to take as soon as you say 'I don't'," Angela Colley, Jan. 4, 2012