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Blog 2018 March Why Do I Need an Attorney for My High Net-Worth Divorce?
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Why Do I Need an Attorney for My High Net-Worth Divorce?

Posted By Law Office of Kathryn Marteeny || 22-Mar-2018

When you and your spouse shared a high number of assets, it could make your divorce that much more complicated. Even though much of the divorce process remains the same, couples with a high net-worth may need additional time and resources to help divide all of their properties, investments, and other assets. In order to avoid any potential blunders, it is important that you work with an experienced attorney who can guide you through your high net-worth divorce.

High Net-Worth Divorce Basics

A high net-worth divorce, or a high-asset divorce, refers to a divorce where the couple shares assets of significant monetary value. This can include any assets accumulated during the marriage or shared between spouses, such as business acquisitions, real estate investments, personal properties, personal investments, stocks and bonds, collectibles, costly possessions, or retirement and pension funds.

How Division of Property Affects High-Asset Divorce

In Texas, at the beginning of a divorce, both couples must reveal all of their assets in an official court document. Hiding any documents is against the law, and could have serious legal repercussions. Texas is a community property state, which means all assets owned during the marriage are considered the property of both spouses. There are a few exceptions, such as family heirlooms or inheritances, which may be considered separate property owned by that individual, but everything else is shared.

All community property is subject to division, and will be divvied up between the spouses equitably, but not equally. This means the court will determine how to divide assets fairly, which means it may not be split 50/50 when all I said and done. Because this process can be subjective and is determined by the judge, it is crucial to have the reliable guidance of an experienced family law attorney fighting on your side. Whether your top priority is keeping your home, vehicles, business, or investments, an experienced high-asset divorce attorney can create a solid legal plan and negotiate to protect your wishes.

Protecting Your Business

If you own your own business, you might be concerned about how a divorce could impact your work. An established high-asset attorney can value your business interests and other relevant assets to better determine your company’s value and work it into your divorce negotiations. Retaining your business and keeping it whole is paramount, and we want to help ensure your business interests remain protected. If you and your spouse share a business, we can work with you to determine the best possible way to protect your interests while planning for beneficial divorce negotiations to obtain your ideal outcome.

Handling Spousal Maintenance

Protecting your assets might be your primary focus as you begin the divorce process, but you might also want to start thinking about how spousal maintenance might affect you. Whether you are the main breadwinner in your household, a homemaker, or full-time parent, it is important that you consider whether or not your spouse will ask for support payments, or if you will request them from your spouse. Spousal maintenance is a regular payment designed to help the receiving spouse maintain the same standard of living they enjoyed during the marriage. If both you and your spouse earn roughly the same amount, you might not have to worry about spousal support, however, it is usually a key factor in high net-worth divorces. If you don’t work, earn significantly less than your spouse, or have spent the majority of your marriage caring primarily for your children rather than working, you may want to think about how much support you should ask for. Likewise, if you earn more than your spouse and expect that they will ask for maintenance, discuss the potential with your attorney and think about how these negotiations could impact your income and cost of living.

Other Factors To Consider

Many couples with a high net-worth decide to establish prenuptial or postnuptial agreements to better protect their interests should their marriage end. If you established one of these documents either before or during your marriage, we can use that document as a basis for your divorce negotiations. Some of the terms in the document might be outdated or some may be void for various reasons, in which case we can work with you to determine how to defend your interests.

Are you going through a high-asset divorce? Contact the Law Office of Kathryn Marteeny to discuss your divorce with our Houston divorce lawyers.

Categories: Divorce, Family Law, Property Division

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