If you believe you and your husband or wife are heading for an Illinois divorce, you may no longer have the same level of trust in your partner you once did. You may suspect that your spouse is beginning to stockpile assets ahead of divorce proceedings, and if your spouse is like many others across America, your suspicions may have merit. At the Law Office of Kerley & Associates, we have a comprehensive understanding of the tactics spouses often rely on to hide assets from one another, and we have represented many clients wanting to ensure they receive their fair share in divorce.
Often, spouses rely on similar methods when they attempt to conceal assets from their partners, and some are easier to spot than others. For example, your spouse may begin making small withdrawals from your shared accounts while hoping you will not notice them. Meanwhile, he or she moves the money into a separate bank account, which may well be at a completely different financial institution. Your spouse may also unload pricy items and belongings to a close friend, while, unbeknownst to you, the two have an existing agreement to sell or transfer said assets back, post-divorce.
It is also possible that your husband or wife will utilize his or her business or job in his or her attempts to hide assets from you. For example, if your spouse owns his or her own business, he or she may intentionally delay invoicing clients for major projects until after the divorce becomes final. He or she may also create fake business expenses in an attempt to portray his or her business as a struggling entity.
If your spouse is close with his or her employer, he or she may also ask the employer to delay raises or promotions until after divorce proceedings wrap, so that the extra money does not factor in during asset division. These are just some of the methods commonly used by spouses trying to hide assets from one another. More about divorce and asset division is available on our web page.