Business Partnerships & Corporate Entities in Divorce
Do You Own a Business with Your Spouse?
The strain of a divorce is usually an emotional time and a financially uncertain one. Partners who are ending a marriage and who own a business together, however, can face even more challenges. These situations are common, with over a million U.S. businesses being owned and operated by married spouses, but they raise unique circumstances and difficult questions in the face of divorce. How many of these businesses manage to survive?
Business assets in a divorce settlement are often the subject of conflict. For this reason, you will want to retain the services of Lois M. Brenner, Esq., a highly skilled New York divorce attorney. Over the last 35 years, our lead attorney has helped many divorcing business partners successfully manage their complex and sophisticated joint business interests, making her uniquely qualified to handle the financial challenges involved in your case.
How Business Relationships Are Addressed During Divorce
It is common legal advice for married business partners going through a divorce that one partner buy out the other. Because there is an objective measure of value inherent to a business, separating partners can arrive at objective figures and then divide. However, when business assets are distributed, payments are not always lump-sum, and may involve slower payments over time or without interest.
It is to the advantage of both spouses to cooperate, since the business may support both spouses in post-divorce life. In some cases, separating partners may not have the same goals or interests with respect to the business, which makes selling a business and splitting funds an equitable option. Although it is an option, it is a risky choice for partners who will soon be in divorce court.
Sometimes, one partner may keep the business and the other keeps different assets. Separating spouses have a lot to consider, and even more so when those spouses own a business together. As with many other issues that arise in divorce and family law proceedings, the best option depends on whether spouses can amicably arrive at agreements and the unique facts and circumstances involved. When there are difficulties, working with an experienced attorney should be a priority. We can help you analyze the possibilities.
To learn more about how we can help, call Lois M. Brenner, Esq. today at (646) 663-4546.
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Amazing, Skillful Mediator!!!! We went to see Lois Brenner for a mediation consultation. We had pretty much decided our marriage was over. We just wanted to end things fair and amicably. Lois Brenner spent so much time with us, and gave us great insight as to how the process would help us, we hired her on the spot. Our sessions thereafter were stealth. She organized us, helped us identify and address all the issues. She showed us how to communicate effectively throughout the process. We were able to address all our issues, especially property and finances, arrive at a comfortable settlement agreement, and now we are waiting for the judge to sign our divorce. What an extraordinary process. I highly recommend Lois Brenner and mediation. She’s super, and mediation really works.- Maggie & Josh
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Best Divorce Lawyers in NYC!! I can’t say enough about Lois Brenner. She saved my life. I was really being abused by my husband. I wanted a divorce, but I was scared to leave. Hiring her provided me with a support system that helped me break free of a destructive marriage. She, along with her team of professionals, and her litigation colleague Matt really gave me the backbone to step up and out. My children are safe, I’m back at work, and we are no longer afraid. The ongoing legal and personal support made all of this possible. Working with Lois and Matt was a life-changing experience. Katie M.- Katie M.
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“We are forever grateful!”- Donna and Frank
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Lois is a “Rock Star” I was very worried about my daughter who was in a really bad marriage. I started researching divorce attorneys and found Lois Brenner. I called her, discussed my daughter’s horrible marriage and she agreed to meet with us. Since my daughter’s husband wanted out of the marriage too (he was cheating), Lois suggested she help them dissolve their marriage in mediation. To my surprise it worked out. Lois was able to keep my daughter and husband from fighting during their sessions, and she helped them resolve all their financial issues. Since I was paying the fees to help my daughter, not having to go to court saved us a great deal of money. As a father, I am truly grateful for everything Lois did. Her talks with me in the beginning of the process, to calm me down, really helped. I would highly recommend her to anyone thinking of divorce.- Graham (happy dad)
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"Like at First Sight!" We consulted Lois on the best, most cost-effective way to get divorced. First, she extended a free in-office consultation to us. It was supposed to be one hour; it was an hour and a half. She was gracious, didn’t rush us, explained thoroughly all the ins and outs of going to court, and answered thoroughly lots of our questions. She also shared lots of great information on divorce mediation, which we really knew nothing about, and now we have decided mediation will be the best route for us. We knew in the first 10 minutes that we really liked and trusted her. We are starting our mediation process with her next week. We are really looking forward to working with her. We feel strongly she is the best person for us.- Jen
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When my daughter was sideswiped and served with a summons by her husband we called Lois Brenner. I had met Lois when she was giving a seminar on Marriage and Finances. I thought she was really smart. I never dreamt I would be calling her to help my daughter. When we went to see her she put our minds at ease. We immediately knew she was the attorney for us. She managed to negotiate a really good settlement with my son-in-law’s attorney. She was tough and always returned our phone calls and responded immediately to our emails. We even heard from her on weekends!! She was determined to keep us out of court and guided us every step of the way. She was our Angel!!! Mary B.- Mary B
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I am a highly successful money manager and before meeting Lois Brenner, hiring a divorce attorney was a disaster. Two previous divorce attorneys really wasted my funds, and had no savvy when it came to asset and property distribution. Lois Brenner finally fixed the mess I was in. She and her team of financial experts, including attorney Matthew Ehrlich were able to prepare an asset and property distribution that was realistic, keeping in mind tax ramifications, and important distributions and allocations. They negotiated a thorough and financially sound divorce settlement. If you have a lot of assets, just any divorce attorney won’t do. You really need someone with a lot of knowledge. Lois Brenner and Matthew Ehrlich were really impressive. Thanks!!- Michael C.
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“First, you were so easy to talk to and second, you really know what you are doing!”- Sharon
