Consequences Of Financial Misconduct During Divorce

Financial misconduct by spouses during and after marriage is a common occurrence. It results in several disputes and losses to the assets and relationships. If the marriage ends and the couples are divorced, instances of active and previous misconduct can cause severe consequences. To learn more about it, consult divorce attorneys in Milwaukee and get the required legal assistance to ease your process. 

These are some of the most common forms of financial misconduct and repercussions.

• Dissipation of Assets

Purposely destroying marital assets is a type of financial misconduct. This includes breaking household items like furniture, vehicles, etc., that cause a reduction in the value of assets. In cases of asset dissipation, the courts have specific guidelines to determine the distribution of property. To compensate the victim of dissipation by the other spouse, a larger divorce award will be given to the spouse who did not get involved in financial misconduct.

• Hiding Marital Assets

Hiding marital property after a divorce is a type of financial misconduct. It occurs when one spouse uses unfair means to occupy those assets simply because they believe they have greater rights to the asset.

Some examples of hiding assets can include undervaluing business, transferring property without telling the other partner, or distributing money in the form of loans to family members.

If this is proven, the court punishes the lying spouse severely and awards the victim a large divorce settlement as compensation for the theft. Many states grant the entire value of that asset to the victim to reimburse them for the fraud. 

It is better to avoid such instances as spouses are given the legal fiduciary duty to protect marital assets. They are obliged by the law to provide complete disclosure about their finances to each other during the divorce process. The omission of information from these disclosures can be considered as hiding the assets, and the guilty spouse will face the repercussions.

• Affairs

Having an affair can be considered financial misconduct if it affects the economic status of the spouse. If a spouse purchases a house for their extra affair, it comes under financial misconduct and will be compensated by the court.

• Gambling

Gambling can severely impact marriage and the finances of a couple. It comes under financial misconduct if the spouse purposely tries to hide the gambling habit and collects a large amount of debt before the divorce. Distributive awards are granted in such cases to innocent spouses as a form of reparation.