Many of the divorce cases we deal with usually involve no more than custody disputes and maybe a house that needs to get divided. But what if your marriage is a little more financially unique? Forbes released an article about the forensic search of possible hidden funds from a billionaire. What can that do for you? Possibly a lot.
Marriages don't have to be between billionaire spouses for there to be hidden assets. It happens more often than you think, and it's good to protect yourself — especially if you're in the camp that stands to lose anything that's rightfully yours. From the piece, this is the money part (excuse the pun):
"[Foresic accounts] will look for discrepancies or anomalies such as unusual transfers of title, or extraordinary transactions between controlled entities. Moneyed spouses should realize that this is one area where the benefits don't outweigh the risks. Methodologies for spotting red flags are proven. Hidden assets will almost always be discovered," said Glenn Liebman, partner at Klein Liebman & Gresen in Chicago.
"The bigger challenge is usually agreeing on valuations once all assets have been identified. Expert assessments regarding illiquid or lightly-traded asset can be especially divergent. Efforts to hide assets erode trust and make negotiations more complicated."
Basically, if you're trying to hide funds and they're found, that makes it a lot harder for the money (or property) hoarder to gain the sympathy of anyone, including the court deciding your case for you.
For more: Ex Marks The Spot -- The Search For Hidden Assets In A Billionaire Divorce (Forbes)
Photo courtesy of Flickr/amisabel_quintero