Business Owner Divorce
Serving the business professionals of Beverly Hills,
Century City, and Santa Monica for over 42 years.
From entertainment executives, doctors, and lawyers, to chief executives, engineers and psychiatrists, Mr. Kelly has successfully helped navigate these professionals through the twists and turns of the divorce process.
More importantly Mr. Kelly runs a business with 38 employees with a mid six-figure monthly budget and mid seven-figure annual income. His understanding of the mechanics of business enables him to truly appreciate the forces that business executives, entrepreneurs, and high level chief executives must deal with on a daily basis.
Mr. Kelly has represented numerous entertainment personalities and executives including heads of record companies and famous actors.
Business Owner Divorce / Asset Division
Child Custody
Nothing is more taxing on a person's ability to focus on his or her professional life than the custody of his or her children. With our experienced child custody attorneys and the assistance of dedicated, articulate and successful age-specific youth psychologists, we provide the winning presentation so that your children have the best possible life you can provide.
Business Evaluation and Division
First, a business or a practice evaluation by an experienced forensic divorce accountant is required. The selection, introduction, and interaction of the forensic divorce account are one of the most important decisions you can make.
Forensic Divorce Accountant:
Thousands, if not millions of dollars are riding on the outcome of the forensic divorce accounting report. Do not skip this critical factor.
The future of the business rests on this report. After carefully choosing your divorce attorney, the forensic divorce accountant is the next most important financial decision you make in the divorce process.
These specialized accountants prepare initial community balance sheets. When he/she has the initial community balance sheet drafts, your divorce attorney can then prepare or defend critical (yet sometimes onerous) Discovery demands.
The Discovery Process is Critical in Divorce:
Although all parties must disclose all assets during the pending of a dissolution, Discovery specifically targets critical information that is required to provide a fair and equitable division of both assets and debts.
Who gets the Family Residence?
All assets are presumed as community. If the family residence is adjudicated or the parties agree that it is completely community, either spouse may offer to buy the other out, or it may be sold.
If either spouse claims a separate property interest, the burden of proof is on the spouse who makes such claim. The claim for separate property thus becomes an evidentiary process.
This will include tracing and documentary proof. Again, community property balance sheets provides critical analysis by which you can assert your community or separate property claim, and the indispensable substantiation necessary for such a claim.
What about your Separate Property?
After separate property has been adjudicated and awarded it belongs to the spouse who was successful in the characterization of the asset in question. These assets may include:
- Businesses
- Family residences
- Paintings
- Rental properties
- Businesses
- Foreign assets
- Family Trusts
- Inheritances
- Financial accountants
- Future streams of income (royalties, copyrights, dividends, etc.)
Cash Flow Available for Support:
If this item does not affect you then nothing will. You do not want to be a victim of a bad cash flow (available for support analysis). Careful preparation, synthesis, and analysis, or if necessary, rebuttal are absolutely required.
- High-earner child support situations
- Personal expenses paid by the imputed income
- Lifestyle expense analysis
- Community and separate property balance sheets
- Tax effects of divorce and tax planning
- Wills
- And more
Essentially, the divorce process for a hard-working business executive can be managed intelligently if you make the right choices early. Naturally, full disclosure is a prerequisite for an equitable divorce judgment.
It is your responsibility however to use every conceivable technology at your disposal:
A Preeminent experienced successful divorce attorney; an experienced sophisticated forensic divorce accountant; and an experienced, sophisticated youth psychologist
For many years, full retirement age was 65 years old . However there are many individuals who are working far past this age.
Again, careful planning can assist significantly in the support orders, so that they take your appropriate retirement plans into consideration. This way you are not inappropriately ordered to pay beyond what you are required to do so.
We hope we have the privilege of serving you and your family's best interest.
- MICHAEL KELLY
