Divorce involving a business can be complex. Yet, you need to effectively navigate the issues if you want to protect your post-divorce financial positioning. But knowing where to start in your preparations can be tough. That’s why this week we want to briefly look at what you can do to ready yourself to address your family business in your divorce.
Tips for ensuring a fair division of a family business
There are a lot of factors to consider when dealing with a business during the divorce process. Here are some key issues that you’ll want to be sure to address:
- Whether the business is a marital asset: Before figuring out how to address the business, you’ll need to determine whether it’s a marital asset that’s subjected to the property division process. Much of this will depend on when the business was started, any contributions the spouses made to the business, and how proceeds from the business were used.
- Proper valuation: If the business is going to be divided or sold, then you need to ensure that you have an accurate valuation of it. There are several methods of valuation that can be used, so familiarize yourself with them so that you can choose the method that’s most advantageous to you.
- Debt considerations: When a business is implicated in a divorce, you don’t want to overlook any debts that are attached to it. These financial obligations can be overwhelming if you’re unprepared to take them on.
- The stress involved: Keeping an ownership stake in a business can be incredibly stressful, especially as you’re navigating into post-divorce life. So, before fighting to keep or obtain an ownership stake, make sure you have a realistic sense of what that’ll entail in your daily life.
Take a comprehensive approach to your divorce
There are a lot of legal issues that you’ll have to confront in your divorce. If you inadequately address them, then you’ll put yourself at a financial disadvantage moving into the next stage of your life.
Don’t let that happen to you. Instead, put in the work necessary to build the strong legal arguments that you need on your side.