What Happens When Someone Hides Assets During Divorce?

It’s a bad idea to hide assets when you’re going through a divorce, yet people still do it all the time. It’s important for you, as the spouse who believes that the other is hiding assets, to take steps to review your finances. Don’t take what your spouse says at face value because the reality is that there could be assets hidden away where you can’t see them.

When someone wants to hide assets, they could do so in a few ways. Here are some possibilities:

  • They could overpay on taxes so that they can get the money back in a refund the following year
  • They could ask an employer to delay a promotion or raise until after the divorce
  • They could delay the receipt of a large commission from work
  • They could transfer assets to a friend or into a separate bank account

There are literally dozens of ways to hide assets, which means that you may find it difficult to know exactly what you have in marital assets. Though your spouse is supposed to be honest, that may not be the case.

Is it worth hiring a forensic accountant?

If you are in a position where you believe that assets are missing or that your spouse isn’t being truthful, then hiring a forensic accountant to locate all of your assets is a good idea. This accountant looks for unusual transfers or sales, and they can track where money goes to locate assets you might not even have known about.

If your spouse is caught hiding assets, the court is unlikely to be pleased. Showing that they were trying to hide assets could leave you in a better position to seek a larger portion of your marital assets overall.

Categories: 
Related Posts
  • Who Has to Move When You Decide to Divorce? Read More
  • What Happens to the Family Business During Divorce? Read More
  • Ways to Divide Hard-to-value Assets in Divorce Read More
/