Arizona is a community property state, which means that your marital assets should be evenly divided upon divorce. That sounds simple, right? The truth of the matter, though, is that marital assets are often hidden to remove them from the property division process. If your spouse is doing this, then you could be left at a distinct disadvantage.
Red flags that your spouse is hiding assets
Assets can be hidden in a number of ways. Your spouse may simply take cash and stash it away where they hope that you won’t find it, or they may remove property to or purchase assets in other states so that they’re difficult to detect.
To find these hidden assets, you should look for these red flags and follow up as necessary:
- Your spouse prevents you from accessing financial records
- You identify large withdrawals from a marital account that are unexplained and unjustified
- New bills are being paid and you don’t know what they’re going towards
- Your spouse is receiving mail from a bank or other financial institution that you didn’t know existed
- A family business’s financial stability has suddenly changed, including an abrupt shift in profitability
- Your spouse complains about financial issues despite presenting an expensive lifestyle
- Large gifts are given to family and friends
If you see any of these red flags of hidden assets, then you should take action to ensure that you’re getting your fair share of the marital estate. This may mean securing the assistance of a forensic accountant and a family law attorney.
Don’t get taken advantage of during your divorce
Far too often divorcing individuals are afraid to stand up to exploitation and other behavior that cheats them out of what they deserve. Don’t let that be you. Experienced law firms that are adept at handling property division issues stand ready to assist you so that you can have your voice be heard and protect the future that you deserve.