You’ve spent years building up a business alongside being happily married to your spouse. In a world where 50% of marriages end in divorce, though, this sad event can happen to anyone. During this period, it’s important to defend your business and ensure that it doesn’t go bankrupt. Here are a few ways to protect your business during a divorce.
Do You Have a Prenup?
The first thing to do when a divorce is on the cards is to figure out whether you signed a prenuptial agreement. Many business owners do this because it protects the interest of their business. Much of the time, though, you can forget this happened. Check your files and see if you have this kind of contract stored somewhere. That will save you a lot of stress.
A prenup will have determined whether your business assets count as marital property. Any assets that are considered marital property will have to be split evenly between you and your ex-partner. If a prenup wasn’t signed, then it’s time to start arguing that the business investments you have made are rightfully yours.
Get Your Business Valued
At this difficult time, it’s a good excuse to get your business valued. Before any money or assets trade hands, make sure your company’s true value is known. Otherwise, you may be giving away more of your wealth than you should reasonably be expected to. If your company’s value has gone down, then don’t end up giving away more than you need to.
There are many valuation services available to help you do this. You need to be accurate to the penny in order to get the best deal possible. Of course, you won’t want to give any of your business assets away. Unfortunately, it may be impossible to avoid during the divorce process, but try and keep as much as you can.
Hire Legal Support
Any divorce is a lengthy and complicated process. First, you need to make sure you have an experienced and reputable legal team on your side. They’ll do much of the work for you, checking what you are and aren’t exactly entitled to. Then, they’ll put together a case to ensure the most positive outcome for you and your business.
Look for a local and highly experienced divorce attorney like Flicker, Kerin, Kruger & Bissada LLP to represent your interests. Tell them that you’re particularly interested in protecting your business. They’ll begin putting together a case that helps you achieve that. A divorce lawyer exists to help everyone follow the processes so that you can come to a fair resolution.
Running a business is never an easy task. However, getting divorced – outside of the emotional turmoil it creates – can cause financial damage to your entrepreneurial project. The best way to avoid this is by signing a prenuptial agreement before getting married. Failing that, get a new valuation of your business and hire an experienced divorce lawyer to represent your business’s interests. Eventually, you’ll hopefully move on to a new prosperous future.
