If you or your spouse has a high net worth, divorce can be very complex. Spouses will often seek to get as much as they can during a divorce, which can become unfair in many cases where one spouse came into the marriage with much higher assets. Texas community property laws seek to make things fair by allowing spouses to keep property that they came into the marriage with, but this might not be fair to spouses who would otherwise be left with nothing after a divorce.
The Dallas high net worth divorce attorneys at The Queenan Law Firm understand many of the intricacies of these laws, and we represent spouses in divorce cases where either or both spouses have a high net worth. For help with your potential divorce case or a divorce case that has already been filed against you, call our law offices today at (817) 476-1797.
Legal Issues in High Net Worth Divorce Cases in Dallas
Texas is a community property state. This means that, when you get divorced, the court will split any assets that are labelled as “community property.” Any property gained during the life of the marriage gets this title, but any property that you owned before the marriage is still “separate property” that you own as an individual.
High net worth divorce cases are handled very differently based on which parties have a high net worth and when the wealth was acquired. For instance, a man with average income and assets that marries a very wealthy woman will have different goals in his divorce than either spouse would in a case where the husband became very rich during the life of the marriage. In the first example, the wife’s assets would be separate property that the husband would not usually have a claim to, but in the second example, the assets would be community property, and both spouses would have equal claim to them.
In many high asset divorce cases, the case will focus on what is and is not community property. Although assets you owned prior to the marriage are usually separate property, any increase in value of that property during the life of the marriage is still community property subject to division at divorce.
Prenuptial and postnuptial agreements can also be used to modify what will be community property and what will be kept as separate property, which can complicate or simplify things, depending on what property the agreement affects. Many cases will also involve issues of how to enforce or override the prenup.
Fault Divorces in High Net Worth Cases in Dallas
Texas divorce law allows both no-fault and fault-based divorce cases. No-fault divorces are common for couples who no longer want to be together because of what other states usually call “irreconcilable differences.” These divorces allow the couple to end the marriage without needing to prove any issues in the divorce and without laying blame on their spouse. Alternatively, a fault divorce allows one spouse to sue the other for divorce based on adultery, abuse, abandonment, or some other grounds.
If you are accused of fault in a divorce, it might affect your assets. Courts are allowed to use fault as a factor in making some economic decisions during a divorce case. Additionally, many prenuptial agreements include infidelity clauses or other clauses that are triggered by cheating, abuse, or other marital issues to give the other spouse a higher share of assets during a divorce. In many cases, a lawyer can help defend against accusations or negotiate with your spouse’s attorney to modify the case to a no-fault divorce.
If your spouse files for a fault divorce, you should get a lawyer immediately.
Finding Hidden Assets in a High Net Worth Divorce Cases in Dallas
Many spouses with a high net worth and a lot of business interests or investments to protect will try to hold onto those assets in ways that their spouse might not be able to access. This could include using foreign bank accounts, LLCs, shell companies, trusts, and other tools to keep their spouse from accessing their wealth. In a divorce case, it is important to disclose all of the assets you have, but you might not be legally required to divulge assets you have use of if they are not in your name.
Many divorce cases among wealthy individuals require the lawyers to carefully go over all assets and use legal tools at their disposal to investigate the spouse’s holdings, potentially uncovering additional assets that might be considered community property. If your spouse might be hiding money from you, our lawyers can fight to find it.
If your spouse has filed for divorce against you and you have assets that they might try to go after, our lawyers might be able to negotiate arrangements with your spouse’s counsel or draft settlement documents to help protect those assets from being divided. This can be essential if you own a business or high-dollar investments and do not want to lose half of these interests to divorce.
Call Our Dallas High Net Worth Divorce Lawyers for a Confidential Case Consultation
Having high-value assets, investments, business holdings, and other assets can often make divorce cases more challenging and increase the risk that the divorce will strip you of a lot of property or become a windfall for your spouse. If you are seeking to protect your assets in a divorce case or you are a spouse seeking your fair share of assets from a high-net-worth spouse, our attorneys might be able to help. Call the Dallas high net worth divorce attorneys at The Queenan Law Firm today for help with your high asset divorce case. Our number is (817) 476-1797.