Divorce proceedings require the division of property. When sitting down to negotiate or preparing to litigate, one spouse may question the accuracy of the disclosures made by the other.
They may notice that certain assets or accounts are not included in the documentation. They might question the value assigned to certain marital assets. They may need help locating and valuing hidden assets to avoid an unfair outcome.
What constitutes a hidden asset?
Hidden assets come in many forms. Some people divert money from a joint financial account to fund a hidden account solely in their name. Others might remove high-value physical resources from the marital home. Antiques, jewelry, fine art and an assortment of other personal property could be worth thousands of dollars. People who don’t want to split that value or risk losing those assets might physically remove them and hide them elsewhere in the early stages of divorce. Others simply exclude resources from their disclosure documents.
What impact do hidden assets have?
Hiding assets unfairly manipulates the outcome of divorce proceedings. Spouses can’t take resources into account when they do not know those assets exist or know the true value of marital property. If people find hidden assets, then the attempt to manipulate the divorce process could impact the outcome of property division proceedings. Judges might consider intentional financial misconduct when dividing the marital estate. They could penalize a spouse for intentionally undervaluing assets or refusing to disclose them as they should.
Reviewing financial disclosures thoroughly with a skilled legal team can help people to identify any warning signs of hidden assets as they prepare for divorce. Those who locate hidden assets can push for a fair property division outcome instead of getting taken advantage of by their spouses.