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shouldvehadprnp

Junior Member
What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Florida

I own a business that was established and owned before I was married. My understanding is that my future ex-wife will have no recourse on the business itself other than the potential increase in value during the term of our marriage which she may be entitled to compensation for. Is this correct? We were married and live in Florida and have only been married 1 1/2 yrs.

She owns her own business but is a sole proprietor. That was also started before we were married. I have a partner and mine is an LLC.

I also understand that assets aquired during the marriage should in theory be split 50/50 and that the short term nature of our marriage will make it unlikely that I would be tapped to pay alimony. My concern is I make about 80k yr plus bennies and she grosses about 30k yr. She is on my health insurance and I have no problem keeping her there until the divorce is final but will I be responsible going forward to keep a health plan for her?

I moved from the townhome that she owned before we were married. I was never added to the deed or mortgage so will I in any way be responsible for that debt? Also her car she bought DURING the marriage she bought completely in her name on her own, would I have any responsibility for that debt?

Lastly, and thank you for your patience, I have offered to let her keep everything materially purchased during the time we were married. (housing upgrades, money she saved on her own etc) and have offered her more than 50% of money that I have saved since the marriage began. Would that be deemed as fair? I know that is a bit general but any guidance would be appreciated.What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)?
 


LdiJ

Senior Member
What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Florida

I own a business that was established and owned before I was married. My understanding is that my future ex-wife will have no recourse on the business itself other than the potential increase in value during the term of our marriage which she may be entitled to compensation for. Is this correct? We were married and live in Florida and have only been married 1 1/2 yrs.

She owns her own business but is a sole proprietor. That was also started before we were married. I have a partner and mine is an LLC.

I also understand that assets aquired during the marriage should in theory be split 50/50 and that the short term nature of our marriage will make it unlikely that I would be tapped to pay alimony. My concern is I make about 80k yr plus bennies and she grosses about 30k yr. She is on my health insurance and I have no problem keeping her there until the divorce is final but will I be responsible going forward to keep a health plan for her?
No, once the divorce is final she will be on her own there. However, if the insurance is through the LLC you will have to offer her COBRA. If its private insurance you absolutely should not cancel her policy, but rather turn it over to her and let her decide whether or not to pay it or to cancel it. If the LLC is paying for private policies rather than a group policy, again, it would be wiser to turn her policy over to her.

I moved from the townhome that she owned before we were married. I was never added to the deed or mortgage so will I in any way be responsible for that debt? Also her car she bought DURING the marriage she bought completely in her name on her own, would I have any responsibility for that debt?
You won't be responsible for her mortgage and if she keeps the car, you won't be responsible for that either. However, if she bought more car than she can realistically afford once she has to support herself on her own income, then that could become an issue...particularly if she had your blessing/encouragement to buy the car.

Lastly, and thank you for your patience, I have offered to let her keep everything materially purchased during the time we were married. (housing upgrades, money she saved on her own etc) and have offered her more than 50% of money that I have saved since the marriage began. Would that be deemed as fair? I know that is a bit general but any guidance would be appreciated.What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)?
Yes, it appears to be fair. She would be entitled to 50% of the assets that accrued during the marriage and responsible for 50% of the debts. The assets include retirement assets.
However, whether or not that is fair depends on the nitty gritty details of your joint finances, and we are not privy to those.
 

shouldvehadprnp

Junior Member
thanks ldj

A little more background. I had about $110k in cash and retirement before we got married. After paying for our wedding, vacations, various housing upgrades etc. I currently have about the same amount in cash and retirement. The bulk of this money was never co-mingled. I have contributed $8k to and IRA in my name and saved a total of about $24k since the marriage (including the IRA contributions). This savings really just got me back to where I was before the wedding. I am offering her $30k cash just to go away in addition to her keeping everything we spent and used for upgrades along with not going after any appreciation or any of the money she has personally saved.

She has told me she is convinced that there is much more there but there isn't. My business does a couple of million in sales but the reality is due to debt load it is likely not worth much more today than it was when we married 1 1/2 yrs ago, and again it is set up as an LLC. She has an attorney chirping in here ear to basically drop the hammer to see what is what. She's threatening forensic accountants will get involved etc. etc. I do not think they will find anything untoward, but really do not want to have to go through that hassle. I do not think she is going to accept the offer and we are going to end up in a battle and incur some serious attorney fees. Would I be responsible to pay her attorney fees? And do I have any recourse myself when they come up empty?
 

Bali Hai

Senior Member
A little more background. I had about $110k in cash and retirement before we got married. After paying for our wedding, vacations, various housing upgrades etc. I currently have about the same amount in cash and retirement. The bulk of this money was never co-mingled. I have contributed $8k to and IRA in my name and saved a total of about $24k since the marriage (including the IRA contributions). This savings really just got me back to where I was before the wedding. I am offering her $30k cash just to go away in addition to her keeping everything we spent and used for upgrades along with not going after any appreciation or any of the money she has personally saved.

She has told me she is convinced that there is much more there but there isn't. My business does a couple of million in sales but the reality is due to debt load it is likely not worth much more today than it was when we married 1 1/2 yrs ago, and again it is set up as an LLC. She has an attorney chirping in here ear to basically drop the hammer to see what is what. She's threatening forensic accountants will get involved etc. etc. I do not think they will find anything untoward, but really do not want to have to go through that hassle. I do not think she is going to accept the offer and we are going to end up in a battle and incur some serious attorney fees. Would I be responsible to pay her attorney fees? And do I have any recourse myself when they come up empty?
The judge will decide what and how much you need to pay.

More importantly, inspect your body frequently for leeches, especially if you've been swimming in a muddy pond. When a leech is spotted, remove it immediately!!
 

shouldvehadprnp

Junior Member
Thanks Bali

I appreciate your reply but my question was under those circumstances who will have to pay the attorney fees? Will I have to pay mine AND hers? How about if they keep pushing a dead issue to inflate fees even when they do not find anything?

I realize the judge will determine who pays what. My question is, based on the expert opinions of the people on this board what is the LIKELY outcome in terms of who pays what in attorney fees?

FYI I check for leeches every morning and every evening now.
 

LdiJ

Senior Member
I appreciate your reply but my question was under those circumstances who will have to pay the attorney fees? Will I have to pay mine AND hers? How about if they keep pushing a dead issue to inflate fees even when they do not find anything?

I realize the judge will determine who pays what. My question is, based on the expert opinions of the people on this board what is the LIKELY outcome in terms of who pays what in attorney fees?

FYI I check for leeches every morning and every evening now.
When there is that kind of disparity in incomes its not uncommon for the higher income spouse to get stuck paying both sets of attorney fees. Its not super common, but its not uncommon either.

I think there is at least a remote possibility that her attorney may be looking more at what kind of fees he/she might be able to collect rather than the best interest of his/her client. You have only been married for 1 1/2 years.

However, if you are viewed as being much more wealthy than you are, then 30k may seem somewhat paltry as an offer. Personally, it sounds like a fair one to me, under the circumstances maybe even more than fair. However, if forensic accountants get involved, you are looking at an extremely expensive divorce, particularly if you end up getting stuck with both sets of attorney fees.

The other problem, is that if you are your partner are cooking the books at all, that will all come to light and can create other complications. What is she asking for? Has she proposed any numbers?
 

shouldvehadprnp

Junior Member
Thanks again ld

We are not cooking the books but as I mentioned the worry with that is what a hassle it will be as well as the expense involved. It just seems unbelievably unfair. To answer your question I think she would settle for another 10k which would be about 40k so the question is would I just be better off sucking that up or do I draw the line in the sand. I feel my original offer is above and beyond the call but if I end up with 20 or 30k in attorney fees on top of a settlement, that extra 10k would have been quite the lost opportunity.

I guess the other option is I just withdraw my offer and since she is going to make an issue with the settlement not being good enough, I just dig my heels in for the fight. At least that way we can throw the house in the mix, the money she has squirrled away, the increase in the value of HER business etc. It just seems silly to me as I think the lawyers would end up with more than the two of us when it is all said and done.
 

shouldvehadprnp

Junior Member
Final question to the fine folks here

Neither the future ex or myself has actually filed yet. She is delaying because I pay the mortgage and she still has access to my checking account through a debit card. She has not contributed anything to our joint accounts since we split a month or so ago and is just spending money on day to day stuff to the tune of about $1300 in the last month. The account is primarily in my name although she is an authorized user. I added her to the account after we were married. My question is
A) should I just stop paying the mortgage - it is soley in her name and I am not on the deed at all.
B) should I have her removed from the checking account and cancel her debit card?

I realize I can just file with my attorney to start the proceedings but at what point do I just stop the bleeding and let the courts figure it out?
 

LdiJ

Senior Member
Neither the future ex or myself has actually filed yet. She is delaying because I pay the mortgage and she still has access to my checking account through a debit card. She has not contributed anything to our joint accounts since we split a month or so ago and is just spending money on day to day stuff to the tune of about $1300 in the last month. The account is primarily in my name although she is an authorized user. I added her to the account after we were married. My question is
A) should I just stop paying the mortgage - it is soley in her name and I am not on the deed at all.
B) should I have her removed from the checking account and cancel her debit card?

I realize I can just file with my attorney to start the proceedings but at what point do I just stop the bleeding and let the courts figure it out?
You are free to stop paying her mortgage and stop her access to your income. However, advise her in advance that you are doing that on the mortgage, and tell her immediately afterwards that you have done that on the bank account.

As far as the marital settlement is concerned, I am very pragmatic. Yes, a long drawn out divorce battle can easily rack up 20-30k or even more in attorney fees. If you can settle without being taken to the cleaners its probably more cost effective to do so.
 

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