Sometimes, it can seem like there’s no end to the obstacles when you’re going through a divorce. For quite a few divorcing couples, fights are frequent, and there’s an ever-revolving door of new problems daily. One common issue we see in our practice is speculation that our client’s spouse may be hiding assets.
Separation of Property During a Divorce
During any divorce, both you and your soon-to-be ex-spouse will be required to disclose all of your assets. As you reveal your assets, you will separate what you believe to be community property (for example, a house or car that you own jointly) and personal property (whatever is yours alone). This is so that you can help facilitate an agreement concerning your collective assets. You may also need to disclose this information as you prepare to go to trial.
Unfortunately, some parties will try to avoid following the rules and may purposely not disclose some of their own assets. The goal here is usually to avoid having their personal assets divided up.
Proving Hidden Assets
If our firm is representing you, and we agree that your ex-spouse is lying in this way, things can get complicated. That’s because it’s up to us to prove to the court that your ex-spouse is hiding assets and finding out where those assets are.
Fortunately, there are a lot of resources we can use as attorneys. We have forensic accounting, for example. Or, we can hire a private investigator.
We’re simply following the “breadcrumbs” at the end of the day. Here’s an example:
Let’s say you had a joint account with your soon-to-be-ex, and there was, at one time, $100,000 in it. Then, all of a sudden, it dropped down to $20,000. Naturally, we want to see where that money went. And there’s almost always some breadcrumb for our experts to grab onto. Most of the time, we find the money or other assets.
Still, if we’re not able to determine where the assets have gone (but we can still prove that assets are being hidden), there are other ways to make your divorce more favorable for you.
For example, we might be able to utilize sanctions or a monetary fine. Or, we could try for an inequitable division of assets. This would mean that instead of a 50/50 division of your community assets, you might take the bulk of it.
Getting a Divorce? Contact Us Today
Divorce is not easy — especially when you have a soon-to-be ex-spouse lying or trying to cheat the system. At Mohajer Law Firm, APC, we have been helping individuals getting divorced in the Greater Los Angeles County area since 2012.
If you are getting divorced and need representation or have questions about your case, please get in touch with us today. We’re here to help.