Having a high net worth can bring luxury into your life and marriage, but can also increase opportunities for intense disputes and loss should you divorce. It doesn’t have to be this way. A Bremerton divorce lawyer from Dellino Family Law can work to protect your finances and help you reach a fair divorce agreement with as little stress as possible.
Our team has 180 years of combined experience. When you partner with a high net worth divorce lawyer in Bremerton, you benefit from all of that collective knowledge and insight. You can trust our team to handle your assets and your divorce proceedings with precision and care.
A Lawyer Can Provide Trusted Advocacy
Our family lawyer in Bremerton can evaluate your assets. We will work to protect what is rightfully yours and to prevent an unfair settlement. We have extensive experience with de-escalation strategies and will work to keep your divorce proceedings as civilized and productive as possible.
Deciding who gets what after a divorce is often an issue with serious potential for conflict. Emotions are already high, and when the financial stakes are higher, those emotions intensify. Having a trusted, knowledgeable advocate is critical.
The Bremerton high net worth divorce attorneys on our team take pride in their ability to find solutions to your legal issues. If negotiations reach a stalemate, we can guide you toward other means of resolution, such as mediation, arbitration, or litigation. Whatever path forward is best for you, we can provide effective, reliable representation.
Understanding High Net Worth Divorces
Having at least $1 million in liquid assets typically constitutes a high-net-worth individual (HNWI). Liquid assets can be converted to cash quickly. They also have a clear financial value. Examples of these assets include:
- Cash
- Savings and checking accounts
- Retirement accounts
- Investments accounts
- Stocks and bonds
- Shares
A high net worth divorce is one in which one or both spouses is an HNWI. Disputes can arise when determining who owns what and who gets what as the marriage dissolves. An attorney can analyze these assets and determine whether they are separate or community property. This designation matters to your divorce outcome.
Hidden Assets
Hidden assets can present challenges in high net worth divorces. A spouse may transfer money, falsify reports, or otherwise find ways to hide assets so the other cannot get them in the distribution of property. Our team at Dellino Family Law can connect with a forensic accountant to uncover hidden assets and ensure a fair division of property.
Separate and Community Property in High Net Worth Divorces
Washington follows a Community Property system for divorce, as established in the Revised Code of Washington (RCW) 26.16.030. Assets and debts you acquire during the marriage count as community property. This property is subject to division upon divorce.
Separate property includes assets or debts you acquired prior to the marriage. It can also include inheritances one party receives during the marriage. An attorney can help determine if a separate bank account is marital property. The account is not automatically separate just because it only has your name on it.
Upon divorce, separate assets usually stay with the owner, though there are exceptions. If you commingle inheritance money with community property, perhaps by depositing it into a joint bank account, the asset may convert to “community” status. The court also may allocate separate property to the other spouse to ensure that spouse avoids financial hardship.
How Washington Divides Property in Divorces
Per RCW 26.09.080, community property undergoes equitable, not necessarily equal, distribution. When making distribution determinations, the court considers the “nature and extent” of community and separate property, the length of the marriage or domestic partnership, and each spouse’s economic situation.
Many couples preparing to marry do not recognize the romance of prenuptial and post-nuptial agreements. They see such agreements as undermining their love and commitment. A high net worth divorce attorney in Bremerton can show you that any marriage, especially one involving high net worth, can benefit from these contracts.
Creating an agreement gives couples the chance to settle issues that could produce conflict during the marriage before tying the knot. It can bring a sense of peace to both parties by designating certain assets as separate. Should the couple’s circumstances change, they have a greater chance of an amicable split with the agreement in place.
Other Implications of High Net Worth on Divorces
In a divorce, the strands connecting finances and family members must be untangled. The details can seem never-ending. Work with a team that will attend to every single one.
Spousal Maintenance
High net worth can affect requests for spousal maintenance. Some states refer to spousal maintenance as “alimony.” The terms refer to the money one spouse must pay the other either temporarily or permanently after a divorce.
Some spouses put career ambitions on hold to care for children and run the home. They may require financial resources until reaching self-sufficiency. Judges determine spousal support amounts and duration on a case-by-case basis, considering the length of the marriage, the standard of living each is accustomed to, and other factors.
Child Support
Child support is an issue separate from spousal support. The court’s priority is ensuring the safety, stability, and well-being of the divorcing couple’s children. Judges consider how to maintain the child’s quality of life when determining child support amounts. These amounts may be higher in high-net-worth divorces, as the child is accustomed to a particular lifestyle.
Taxes and Penalties
High net worth brings additional financial complexity. Some accounts could have withdrawal restrictions. “Dividing” those accounts could trigger penalties or capital gains tax. A Bremerton high asset divorce lawyer can help you take actions to avoid or mitigate these consequences.
Our Bremerton High Net Worth Divorce Lawyers Find Solutions
Some divorces resolve simply. Others take more time. Whether your high net worth divorce is complicated or straightforward, we can get you through the proceedings and to a fair resolution. No matter what problems arise, a Bremerton high net worth divorce attorney and the entire team at Dellino Family Law can work to find solutions.
