Negotiating the division of property in a divorce begins with identifying the properties that you and your spouse own. Marital properties are the ones that you will equitably divide between each other. Non-marital or separate properties belong to only one of you, though knowing their value is relevant when deciding on financial matters in your divorce. You and your divorce attorney will at times need to cooperate with your spouse to obtain records on your marital and separate assets. However, spouses sometimes hide valuable assets during divorce so that they do not have to share them or to make it appear that they have fewer financial resources. Hidden assets can skew the financial balance of your divorce agreement, and you need to work with your attorney if you believe that your spouse may have hidden assets.
What Are You Looking For?
Hidden assets can be secret financial accounts or luxury items that your spouse is holding in a place that you are not aware of. A spouse can more easily hide assets when they own a business or are the only one who manages their marital finances. If you are unsure whether your spouse has hidden assets, you can start by obtaining copies of their income tax returns or loan applications. In those documents, you are looking for:
- Unidentified assets
- Unexplained transactions
- Discrepancies between the income they told you and the income they reported
If your attorney finds suspicious information, they may trace it to a separate bank account or discover that the assets were temporarily transferred to another person.
...