Pennsylvanian residents who go into a divorce are likely not expecting to unearth hidden assets that their spouse has been keeping away from them. Unfortunately, this is the reality that some people may face.
In fact, HuffPost shares that the National Endowment for Financial Education reported 2 out of every 3 divorces involve some kind of hidden assets. Huffpost also states that there are many different ways to hide assets when a marriage gets rocky, and that people can engage in this behavior for many different reasons. They may see the divorce as inevitable and want to be prepared for the moment it happens, or they may believe that they shouldn’t have to split their money with their spouse at all. However, it’s easier to track hidden assets these days with electronics and apps.
Assets can be hidden in different ways, and different types of assets can be hidden as well. For example, if a person neglects to mention a small purchase made, that could actually count as hiding assets. Hiding assets during divorce is not without its consequences, though. Forbes makes a reminder that it’s a legal requirement to be honest about assets at the time of a divorce. This includes debts, expenses, and income. Lying about or hiding any of these things is illegal. If caught, it could land someone with many different penalties including fines, dismissal of claims, or even incarceration in particularly severe cases.
Some people still feel like it’s worth the gamble to hide assets in an attempt to keep everything and not have to lose half. However, the penalties could make this gamble more risk than it’s worth.
For more information, contact Louis Wm. Martini, attorney at law.