When you divorce in Indiana, you and your spouse have to split everything that either of you own. The property division process can be stressful and can bring out the worst in divorcing spouses. People who are often law-abiding and considerate humans can become downright vicious during their divorce proceedings.
If your spouse has expressed anger or bitterness about the end of the marriage, then there is a possibility they may try some underhanded tactics to manipulate the outcome. Hiding assets is a common trick when couples have a lot of property, despite being obviously illegal.
What are some of the more common places that people hide assets in high-asset divorces?
In a secret account
Some people have a secret bank account that they have contributed to throughout the entire marriage. Others may have started hiding money away when they realized divorce was imminent.
Reviewing financial records from the marriage may lead you to realize that your spouse earned more than you knew or that there are resources completely unaccounted for in your budget. Missing money is a major red flag that there is a secret banking or investment account out there in your spouse’s name.
In hard-to-track assets
Some people will take liquid capital and convert it to other valuable resources as a way to hide their financial circumstances from their spouse and the courts. For example, your spouse may have increased the frequency of their trips to the casino and told you that they have lost consistently when in reality they have stored casino credit or chips to cash out after the divorce.
Similarly, they may have made online exchanges that they don’t want to report to you. Cryptocurrency has become a popular way for people to obfuscate their financial transactions. If you believe your spouse has Bitcoin or any other kind of hidden financial resources, you need to locate them to secure a fair divorce.
In physical property
Has your spouse purchased a lot of jewelry with marital income? While you may not want her ruby earrings, you may have an interest in your fair share of the value of those earrings.
Don’t discount the financial worth of physical assets like art, collectibles and antiques just because you have no interest in keeping the assets. You may even need to bring in professionals to place values on major assets so that you can ask for your fair share of them in the divorce.
Locating hidden assets and reporting them to the courts will play a major role in protecting yourself and your financial future in a high-asset Indiana divorce.