What to Expect in a DuPage County High-Asset Divorce

 Posted on March 17, 2022 in Divorce

Divorce can be difficult and complicated for anyone. Even for spouses who do not share many assets, there can still be quite a lot of conflict during a divorce. However, if you and your spouse–or one of you alone–hold assets of significant value, the road to a final divorce decree can be even rockier. Dividing your assets is likely to be the most time-consuming and legally difficult part of your divorce. Even sorting out who actually owns what can be difficult if your marriage lasted more than a few years. You may endure more conflict throughout. It is critical that you find an attorney who is experienced with guiding people through high-asset divorce. This kind of divorce takes skill. 

What Concerns May Arise During High-Asset Divorce?

Dividing your marital assets will naturally be more difficult the more assets you own. Some assets, like stock portfolios, real estate holdings, and joint businesses, are difficult to divide. Concerns you should be aware of include:

• Litigation likely - High-asset spouses are much more likely to litigate their divorce issues. One of the big reasons many couples try to avoid divorce litigation is that it can get expensive, making it not quite worth it. When you and your spouse have high-value assets, the value of the property at stake may far exceed the cost of litigation. This may make litigation seem worth it if you are not able to come to a reasonable agreement. 

• Prenuptials - If one or both of you already held significant assets or owned a business prior to the marriage, it is quite likely that you used a prenuptial agreement. Usually, prenuptial agreements are heavily in one spouse’s favor. The disfavored spouse is very likely to challenge the validity of the prenuptial agreement. You may end up spending time simply disputing that. You should also know that prenuptial agreements may not be enforced if they are drastically unfair to one spouse, such that they would be left unable to provide for themself. 

• Difficult division - Some assets, like real estate, cannot simply be split in half. Others, like stock investments, may be difficult to divide evenly. Should you co-own a family business, there may be an extensive dispute over the best way to divide your interests in it. Figuring out how to divide these assets fairly can be complicated. 

• Timeline - Your divorce could take years. Unless you are able to quickly come to a reasonable agreement and file an uncontested divorce, the litigation could drag out for quite a while. 

Call a DuPage County High-Asset Divorce Lawyer

Calabrese Associates, P.C. is skilled at handling high-asset divorce cases. Our Naperville high-asset divorce attorneys have experience at helping spouses divide complex assets, with or without litigation. Call 630-393-3111 for a free consultation. 

Source: 

https://www.ilga.gov/legislation/ilcs/ilcs3.asp?ActID=2087&ChapterID=59