When a Spouse Hides Assets in a Florida Divorce: Red Flags Orlando Attorneys Look For

Money has a way of disappearing right when a marriage starts to unravel. A joint account that once held a comfortable cushion suddenly looks thin. A bonus that arrived every March never seems to show up on a financial affidavit. For Orlando divorce attorneys, this pattern is familiar enough that it has a name: asset dissipation. Under Florida law, hiding or intentionally wasting marital property is not just a moral failing, it can directly affect how a judge divides the marital estate.

Why Spouses Try to Hide Assets

Divorce forces both parties to disclose their full financial picture, and that transparency can feel threatening to a spouse who has spent years quietly building a cushion outside the marriage. Sometimes the motive is fear of an uncertain future. Other times it is an attempt to gain leverage in negotiations. Florida courts do not look kindly on it once discovered.

Common Red Flags

A few patterns tend to repeat themselves in cases involving concealed assets.

• Sudden changes in spending habits are often the first sign. A spouse who begins making large cash withdrawals, paying down unfamiliar debts, or transferring money to relatives may be quietly repositioning funds before a filing.
• Overpaying the IRS or creditors is another tactic. A spouse might intentionally send more than what is owed on taxes or loans, expecting a refund or credit after the divorce that never gets disclosed.
• New business ventures or side accounts can also be a warning sign, particularly when a spouse who was never especially entrepreneurial suddenly opens accounts the other spouse has never seen.
• Delayed compensation is a subtler strategy. A spouse who asks an employer to postpone a bonus, commission, or stock vesting date until after the divorce is finalized may be trying to keep that income out of the marital pot entirely.
• Undervaluing a business is common when one spouse owns a company. Inflated expenses or unusually low reported earnings around the time of filing can suggest the books are being manipulated.

What Florida Law Says

Florida is an equitable distribution state, meaning marital assets are generally divided fairly, though not necessarily equally. Under Florida Statutes Section 61.075, courts consider several factors when dividing property, including the intentional dissipation, waste, depletion, or destruction of marital assets occurring after a petition is filed or within two years before it was filed. When a judge finds that this happened, the wronged spouse can receive a larger share of the remaining assets to offset what was lost.

Building a Case

Uncovering hidden assets typically requires more than a hunch. Bank statements, tax returns, and business records often tell a different story once compared side by side. In more complex cases, forensic accountants may be brought in to trace funds and identify inconsistencies between reported income and actual spending. Formal discovery tools, including financial affidavits and subpoenas, give attorneys the ability to compel disclosure when a spouse is not forthcoming voluntarily.

Suspecting that a spouse is hiding money can be an unsettling experience, especially when the relationship has already grown distant. Bringing those concerns to an experienced Orlando divorce lawyer early can make a meaningful difference in the outcome of a case, since evidence of dissipation becomes harder to gather the more time passes.

Are you worried that your spouse is not being financially honest with you? Uncovering the full picture of a marital estate takes patience and the right legal strategy. The knowledgeable Orlando family lawyers at Donna Hung Law Group are available to help. Call 407-999-0099 or contact us online to schedule a consultation.

Source:

flsenate.gov/laws/statutes/2023/61.075