Author: Matt

Divorce is difficult for many reasons, but it can be especially complicated for small business owners in Texas. If you own your own company, you know how hard you worked to build your business and find success over the years. The possibility of having to divide your hard-earned business assets or losing some of the control you have over your company can be overwhelming.

Business owners would be wise to take care to understand how divorce and the property division process will work for them. While it is certain that your divorce will impact your life in various ways, that does not have to mean that you will lose your business or have to give up operational control. Many factors will determine exactly what happens and what the future of your company will look like.

The business of dividing a business in a divorce

A business is an asset, and all marital assets are subject to division in a divorce. The key to what will happen to your business is whether your company is truly a marital asset or if it is a separate asset. If you have one, a prenuptial agreement may also impact what will happen to marital assets. Consider some of the following facts about property division and business assets:

• Your business is likely marital property if you or your spouse started the company after your marriage. This means that it is subject to division.
• Your business may be separate property if you started your company before you married or if there is evidence you started the business with completely separate funds.
• Even if you started your business before you married, it is possible your spouse has a claim to at least a portion of your business assets. 

As you can see, it can be a little complicated to determine exactly what is marital property and what is not when it comes to your family business. Because of the complex nature of this process, many business owners find it beneficial to work with an attorney who can help them pursue the most beneficial outcome to their situation. 

If you are facing divorce, you will find it beneficial to take quick action to seek a complete understanding of your legal options. It is possible to fight for a final resolution that allows your business to have a strong future and for you to retain financial security for years to come.

Once you make the choice to move forward with divorce, you will then need to decide how to prepare for what your financial future will look like. You naturally want to make sure that you have what you need for your financial security. You also want to protect what is rightfully yours, which includes an inheritance you received from a family member. 

Learning that you are the recipient of an inheritance can be exciting, but you also understand the importance of making sure that you protect that money. Your divorce will represent significant financial changes in your life, and you may fear what that could mean for the inherited assets. It can be helpful to learn more about property division in divorce and how you can pursue the future you deserve.

Is it separate property?

One of the most important distinctions when deciding what will happen to a specific asset during divorce is understanding whether it is marital property or separate property. Marital property includes anything that you or your spouse earned or accumulated while married. Most of the time, this even includes things that one of you bought with your own money. It also includes things like retirement savings, digital assets and more. It can be a monumental task to determine what counts as marital property. 

As you can imagine, property division is often one of the most contentious parts of a divorce. The good news for you is that an inheritance given to just one spouse is usually separate property – this means that it is likely that your spouse will have no legal grounds to claim part of your inherited money in your divorce. You may have to prove that you had no intention of sharing these assets with the other party.

Comingling of assets

There may be a time, however, when inherited property could be subject to division in a divorce. This may happen when one spouse used his or her inherited property in a way that makes it difficult to distinguish whose is what. Comingling assets can make the process of protecting your inheritance very difficult.

Fighting for what’s yours

The property division process can be quite complicated and emotionally charged. You will find it beneficial to discuss your concerns with an experienced Texas family law attorney and discover what assets you may be able to keep and what you can do to fight for a fair final divorce order.