There are many ways that you could lose your assets or see them diminish in value during a divorce. At the law office of Robert G. Smith, PLLC, we use a variety of strategies to address these diverse risks.
Of course, it is difficult to defend against asset loss if you do not know where and when it could occur. Here is a brief overview of some of the major risks associated with most high-asset divorces in New York.
The opposing party in your case, your soon-to-be ex-spouse, is probably the largest source of risk in your divorce. You or your counterpart may want different things, and some of these disagreements may lead to unnecessary or disproportionately costly conflict. Taking the effort to identify what you want and communicating it clearly often solves the bulk of this problem. Typically, we would use negotiation or mediation at this stage, arriving at mutually beneficial agreements.
New tax rules could change the tax burden on alimony recipients. There are also various other tax liabilities that could affect your case. It is important to recognize these and have the penalties distributed evenly in the wording of your original ingredients if you intend to minimize tax loss.
The court itself could also pose a certain type of threat to your assets. As you probably know, divorce lawyers charge for their time, so the simplest solution possible is often the cheapest as well. Furthermore, the court requires fees for many of the litigated portions of these types of cases. While they may not be very high by themselves, the sum of the procedural costs, fees and other expenditures associated with a divorce case often becomes sizeable without active management. The solution to this is often to use litigation and other formal strategies judiciously, focusing on negotiation whenever possible.
An efficient divorce saves money and time. Every case is different, and yours may require more litigation or discovery and than others. Our aim is to minimize these costly processes while still delivering the best possible results for our clients. Please read more on our main website.