High-Asset Divorce in Illinois

 Posted on February 25, 2015 in Family Law

If you are contemplating a divorce, one of your first concerns may be how the divorce will affect your financial future. Dissolving a marriage will inevitably have an impact on both spouses’ financial circumstances. This is particularly felt in high-asset divorce cases. The higher and more varied assets you own, the more complex challenges may arise during divorce. Regardless of the specific assets involved, you will need experienced legal help during your high net worth divorce.

Complex and High-Asset Divorce

Perhaps the most financially relevant dispute in a divorce is property division. Illinois uses a property division standard termed “equitable distribution.” This means that both spouses receive a “fair” share of their marital property based on their individual monetary and non-monetary contributions to the marriage. According to state law, marital property generally includes all assets acquired during the marriage.

Equitable distribution does not necessarily mean that property will be divided equally. If a judge decides how to divide the property, he or she will use a number of factors to determine “fair” awards. In Illinois, some of these factors include:

• Length of the marriage;
• Each spouse’s age;
• The physical and mental condition of each party;
• Each spouse’s economic circumstances at the time of property division;
• The value of each spouse’s total property interests; and
• How and when specific marital property was acquired.

Along with other factors, these considerations will determine what marital property, including monetary assets, each spouse will receive upon divorce.

Handling property and asset division can be tricky when one or both spouses have a high net worth. You may be concerned about the division of your investment accounts, business interests, trusts, pensions, real property holdings, and other high-value assets. Some property may be considered separate legal property, and thus not subject to equitable distribution. Often, high net worth individuals own business interests. You may jointly own a valuable business with your spouse. That business will need to be properly valued by a financial expert since the value could impact property division.

You and your spouse may have signed a prenuptial or postnuptial agreement designed to resolve such financial disputes. During many divorces, the validity of prenuptial and postnuptial agreements is challenged. In that case, your experienced divorce lawyer can help ensure a valid agreement is enforced for your benefit.

DuPage County Firm Helps High Net Worth Clients