Getting a divorce often means that you can expect to face significant financial upheaval and uncertainty. This can be made even more serious if your ex is involved in financial infidelity – hiding a portion of their assets so that it isn’t rightfully divided up during the divorce proceedings.
Though this is against the law, it’s important to be aware of this possibility. The law is meant as a deterrent, but depending on the animosity that is involved in the termination of your relationship, there could be a chance that your ex is willing to take a risk in order to deny you your rightful portion.
This is why it is so vital to work with your legal team to protect yourself against the possibility of missing out because of your former partner’s financial infidelity.
Common Places Where Money can be Hidden
Here is a list of the most common places you can look to discover if your ex is trying to hide assets or income:
1. Unreported Income
If possible, your ex might collect cash from their clients and simply not report the income in order to prevent these earnings from showing up on financial statements. This kind of trick can be discovered if their expenses are much higher than their income would suggest they can afford.
2. With Family or Friends
A deceitful partner with close family or friends on their side might transfer funds to them, disguised as a service or product payment. This can be discovered by taking a close look at recent transactions and tracing them.
3. With Fake Employees
If your ex is in a position to do so, they might invent employees who can receive salary checks that can be voided later. Take a look at the company payroll if you want to uncover this kind of trickery.
4. Newly Purchased Goods
Another way to hide income is to buy expensive items, such as furniture, which can be resold after the divorce is complete, or even returned. Naturally, your ex won’t be eager to show you their new purchases, so it might take a bit of detective work to discover these.
5. Hidden Cash
Don’t forget that your spouse could even simply hide a large amount of cash from you. Whether in a safety deposit box, in a shoebox or under the mattress, there are many places where your ex could try to hide income to prevent having to share it.
6. Inflating Taxes
If your spouse is self-employed another trick is to pay higher than normal instalments to the government. The idea being that once the divorce is finalised they can claim a refund on their tax return.
There are several other common tricks that may be used to commit financial infidelity. However, working with a trusted lawyer who is familiar with these practices and how to uncover them will give you the satisfaction that your financial situation throughout the divorce will be fair and honest.
Implications of Financial Infidelity
If your partner manages to slip under the radar, you could miss out on a significant amount of money that otherwise would have gone to you or towards spousal and/or child support. Spending a bit of time with a lawyer to prevent this will play an important role in the long run.