Cary High Asset Divorce Lawyer

Get Help with Your High-Asset Divorce Today

A high asset divorce lawyer helps protect your wealth from unreasonable demands and potential capital loss. We combine our experience and knowledge with compassion for clients during this highly charged emotional time.

The Breeden Law Office understands the unique nature of high-asset couples seeking a divorce.

High Asset Divorces Require Special Care

Talk to a high-asset divorce lawyer if you, your spouse, or both have a high net worth. Attorney Jonathan Breeden and his team can increase your chances to get the divorce settlement that you deserve.

North Carolina is an equitable distribution state. However, equitable does not always mean equal when the court wields power to distribute and divide your hard-earned assets. With help from a lawyer from a high asset divorce law firm, you can be confident in the protection of your wealth.

What Is a High Asset Divorce Settlement?

A high asset divorce lawyer is an advantage for an individual with:

• Significant wealth and assets
• Inheritance
• Family-held or jointly owned businesses
• Multiple properties

Dividing and distributing assets between a wealthy couple is complex. When you factor in the emotional component or any allegations of fraud or abuse, a high asset divorce attorney could mean the difference between financial strength or ruin.

How is Property Divided in a High-Asset Divorce?

When a married couple has unequal earning power, the court could favor the spouse with a lower salary. The court may also choose to award less to a spouse who misbehaved during the marriage or the divorce, such as fraud or hiding assets. An asset distribution lawyer can help with this process.

Other factors that affect the distribution of wealth and assets:

• Length of marriage
• Minor children
• Jointly held property or business

Different Types of Property

North Carolina recognizes three types of property:

• Marital: All assets and property acquired by either party or both, after marriage but before the separation.
• Divisible: Any marital property that diminishes or appreciates is considered divisible property.
• Separate: Any property owned by a spouse before marriage or inheritance before or during the marriage.

Challenges in a High Asset Divorce

Attorney Breeden carefully evaluates your situation, particularly your and your spouse’s financial disclosure statements. You only have one opportunity to ensure an equitable and fair split of assets and property.

The Breeden Law Office has earned a reputation for our thorough and knowledgeable handling of high wealth divorces.

Spousal & Child Support

Typically, the longer the marriage, the greater the chance for the court to award alimony or spousal support. Judges might favor the lower-earning spouse – such as the stay-at-home parent – to ensure maintenance of an accustomed standard of living. North Carolina recognizes two primary forms of spousal support: post-separation support and long-term support.

Each spouse has different views and desires regarding financial support. We take our client’s economic, educational, and professional needs into consideration.

State child support guidelines might not apply to wealthy couples. Child support in a high asset divorce might include private school and other considerations that are atypical in most settlements.

Business Ownership

When a married couple owns a business together, it can be challenging to find an equitable solution during a divorce.

Depending on the willingness of both parties, it is possible to create a partnership of a jointly owned business despite the divorce.

Other options include:

• Selling the business and dividing the profits
• Allowing one spouse to retain the business and buy out the other spouse
• Placing the company into a family trust to benefit children and grandchildren.

Divorce & Cheating or Abuse

North Carolina is a no-fault divorce state, meaning that you do not need grounds for divorce. However, judges are human and may want to punish a cheating or abusive spouse financially. If the other party refuses to negotiate in good faith, proof of marital misconduct is an effective bargaining tool.

Protecting an Inheritance

An inheritance is usually excluded as marital property, no matter when the individual received it. However, any inheritance, estate, or legacy placed into a joint checking or savings account, or another type of investment, could be vulnerable to distribution.

A high asset divorce attorney can answer your questions and concerns about inheritance as separate property and therefore excluded from the settlement.

Hiding Assets & Fraud

Occasionally, an unscrupulous spouse tries to hide assets through a third-party, out-of-state trust, or offshore investments. A high-asset divorce lawyer recognizes these tactics and will take appropriate steps to protect clients from financial or criminal consequences.

Tax Implications in a High Worth Divorce

Spousal support is not tax-deductible for the paying spouse. Still, there may be tax implications for the spouse receiving alimony and child support.

Married couples who used to file jointly might find themselves in either higher or lower tax brackets. They might also benefit from capital loss carry-forward, allowing taxpayers to apply a current loss to a future tax period. The Breeden Law Office can connect clients to tax attorneys and other professionals for specific help.

Dividing Assets While Protecting Value

Attorney Breeden finds creative solutions and compromises to dividing assets while maintaining their value. High-worth couples often have multiple properties and a diverse financial portfolio. We intend to protect your hard-earned wealth, including:

• Stocks and bonds
• IRAs, 401ks, annuities, and money market funds
• Gold and other precious metals
• Real estate, including primary residence, vacation or second homes, and rental properties

Estate Planning

Sometimes it is helpful for clients ending a long-term marriage to get estate planning counsel. You may want to consider estate planning in conjunction with resolving the financial issues in your divorce.

Mediation Versus Court

A high asset divorce lawyer may recommend that you and your spouse resolve your differences in mediation instead of a courtroom. Selecting mediation means that you keep your financial affairs private. Mediation also protects you from an overreaching judge who might not distribute your assets evenly.

Child Custody & Visitation Issues

Attorney Breeden understands the need for sensitivity and compassion for minor children affected by divorce. We offer complete family law services in North Carolina for spouses seeking individual or joint custody.

Is a House Automatically Considered Marital Property?

A house is considered along with other assets as either marital or separate property. Should one spouse acquire the house prior to marriage or inherit it, it is generally regarded as separate property.