High Net Worth Divorce Attorneys

Serving Cook, Will, DuPage & Lake Counties

The Walters Law Group has extensive experience handling high-asset and complex divorce cases. Our years of experience equips us to handle complex property division cases, real estate, business, professional practice, and financial / investment account cases.

We can HELP you answer these questions:

~Can I afford to get a divorce?

~Are there hidden assets involved?

~Can you help me value professional practices and other businesses?

~What are the options with pensions, IRA’s and 410(k)s in divorce?

Asset Discovery

Asset discovery is a routine part of a divorce case, and a frequent aspect of high net worth divorces. Such divorces are a special focus of the lawyers at The Walters Law Group, Ltd.

Advanced Property Division in Illinois

Not all divorce attorneys have the skills and experience to engage in high-level asset discovery, asset protection, business valuation and division of property. Our firm welcomes these challenges, and has an enviable record of success in pursuing them.

In a divorce, with so much at stake, it is not uncommon to suspect your spouse of hiding assets. When this happens, it is necessary to conduct an analysis of the spouse’s finances and holdings, to see if assets have been deliberately excluded.

High-Level Marital Asset Discovery

At The Walters Law Group we conduct hidden asset investigations, sometimes with the assistance of a skilled forensic accountant. This is especially important when the spouse owns a business, has received a major inheritance, or has significant holdings, including real property, in many different places.

Successful Locators of Hidden Assets

This is detective work, and it can be complex, but it is usually quite possible. Unless your spouse is a master criminal, he or she is probably not very skilled at hiding things either from us, or the professionals that we employ on your behalf. Our researchers have a high degree of success in locating assets, when they are hidden, or demonstrating that no such assets exist.

Marital Asset FAQs

Where Are the Assets Hidden?

It’s smart to be suspicious about your spouse’s real assets. After all, they are YOUR assets as well. Spouses who have their own businesses are often more savvy about how to keep assets secret — and separate from the property division process.

Locating hidden assets is one of our skills as attorneys at The Walters Law Group, Ltd. Most hidden assets are not really hidden at all — they are just kept in accounts you may not be aware of. But there are hiding places you may not have thought of. Here are a few places where hidden assets are sometimes found.

Ask yourself: Does this sound like something my soon-to-be ex might try?

Undervalued business property. This includes real estate, merchandise and information, including trade secrets.

Employer collusion. Workers have been known to put off bonuses, stock options and even raises until the divorce is settled.

Fraudulent business valuation. There are many ways that the value of a business can be shaded.

Delayed or retained earnings. People in business have been known to put off signing valuable contracts until after the divorce.

Fraudulent deductions. Imagine writing a check for $10,000 to a friend for “services rendered.” The friend provides a receipt and tears up the check.

Phony debts. Arranging with a pal to “owe” $10,000 diminishes the size of one’s assets — without costing a dime.

Investments. Tax-free municipal bond interest payments, for instance, don’t show up on 1099-DIVs.

Cash and off-the-books expenditures. The paper trail is less obvious, but you should tally up the amount paid out of pocket for meals, entertainment and impulse purchases.

Art. At is an investment that is not easily valued, and can hide in plain sight. We look for any kind of artwork, including locations away from home.

Custodial accounts. Money is sometimes hidden by signing it over to a son or daughter.

Equipment. Expensive hobby equipment such as woodworking tools or weaving looms may be a sign not just of asset value but of additional income.

Gifts. Expenses or support paid to a lover — travel, jewelry, rent payments or schooling.

Antiques and collectibles. Items like vintage comic books and baseball cards fetch millions at auctions.

Compassionate, Effective Chicago Divorce Courtroom Trial Lawyers

Tough & Aggressive Family Law & Divorce Attorneys.

We have over twenty years of combined experience in handling divorce, custody and family law cases.   YOU give us your confidence, WE give you the peace of mind and the results you deserve.

We help people and families in Chicago and throughout the Chicagoland suburbs.

To meet with us, call The Walters Law Group, Ltd.’s attorneys at 708-361-9700, or e-mail us using this online form.