Spouses are not always financially honest when they’re divorcing. In fact, some have been financially dishonest with their partner for years. If you doubt your spouse’s integrity, then it’s important to understand how they might try to cheat you of a fair settlement during the property division process.
There are two primary ways that they could seek to achieve this aim.
Concealing assets
If your spouse has never told you about the extra bank account where they have been squirreling away money, your chances of getting a share of that money will be slim when divorcing. If you don’t know about it, you can’t claim a share of it. So, unless they declare it as they ought to, you could lose out. There are plenty of other ways to hide money, from failing to declare the true value of an asset to asking a boss to hold off on paying a yearly bonus. All are unacceptable as the law expects divorcing spouses to declare all their assets.
Dissipating assets
Your spouse may happily spend your money on unnecessary things or give away your joint assets all to save having to share them with you. If they are gone, you can’t get a share of them. It’s more likely a spouse will do this when they can earn back that money relatively easily after the divorce. And it is often done when they know that their spouse does not have that same earning power – so the loss of money will affect the other party much more significantly than it will affect them.
If you suspect your spouse of concealing or dissipating assets, then you need to find out more about your legal options. Seeking personalized guidance is a good way to start safeguarding your interests in this regard.
