Best Interest Law is committed to protecting your interests in a divorce. Property division includes asset and liability division. Asset division can include land, homes, real estate, collectibles, vehicles, furniture, bank accounts, brokerage accounts, business ownership interests, cash, stocks, bonds, retirement accounts, benefits, and more. Liability division can include credit card debts, mortgage obligations, loans, outstanding tax obligations, and more.
The first step is “inventory”. As early as the first consultation, Attorney, Dennis M. Germain, begins organizing a thorough assets and liabilities table. Conducting necessary discovery is important so that no major assets or liabilities are overlooked. If the opposing party is uncooperative in disclosing assets, Attorney Germain is relentless in accessing withheld information and pursuing remedial sanctions.
The next step is “valuation.” It is important to enter your settlement conference or negotiations with a solid grasp on the value of the parties’ assets as well as the corresponding financial implications. After valuation is “characterization”. This step entails characterizing property as either divisible marital property or non-divisible separate property.
Next is “division”. Division of property is based on the equitable assessment of eight to fifteen factors. In practice, “equitable” does not necessarily mean 50/50, but instead means fair distribution in light of all circumstances. This system has many grey areas and strong advocacy regularly governs division.
The final step is “invasion.” Even if property is characterized as non-divisible separate property, one party may attempt to invade that separate property under certain statutory exceptions. Attorney Germain knows how to favorably characterize the parties’ assets and liabilities and how to initiate or defend against invasion of non-divisible separate property. Attorney Germain does the necessary groundwork to achieve you a favorable property and debt distribution.
Property and debt division matters can include but are not limited to the following areas:
- Inventory & Valuation
- Discovery
- Concealment of Assets
- Unilateral Dissipation of Assets
- Characterization as Marital vs. Separate Property
- Invasion of Separate Property
- Equitable Division Factors
- Prenuptial & Postnuptial Agreements
- Retirement Asset Division
- Enforcement
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