Coffman Family Law

Family law attorney providing compassionate, innovative, and thorough legal representation to families in distress

Business Breakup: Valuing and dividing your business in divorce

Assets acquired during the marriage, individually or jointly, are presumed to be marital. The significance of the “marital” classification is that the asset will be valued and then distributed (“divided”) according to Florida law.

One might ask, “What if my spouse’s business is in his/her name only, but was started during the marriage?” Here, a business acquired or started by a spouse during the marriage is a marital asset and, therefore, subject to equitable distribution; it does not matter that the business is in the business owner’s name only (“individually”). A Florida District Court of Appeals put it this way: “A business acquired during the marriage is a marital asset and should not be awarded solely to one spouse.”

Thus, the business must be valued. Typically, an expert is retained to perform the valuation of the privately-held corporation(s) at issue.

Once a valuation is obtained, how the business gets distributed (“allocated”) is a question for a follow-up blog post.

If you are going through a divorce and are a business owner or the spouse of a business owner, it is imperative that you speak with a lawyer experienced in spearheading the complexities of business valuation and distribution. Joshua Coffman has that experience. If you would like to speak to him further about your case, contact us here to schedule a consultation or call 407-399-7440.

What types of alimony are available in Florida?

There are five types of alimony in Florida, namely: (1) temporary alimony; (2) bridge-the-gap alimony; (3) rehabilitative alimony; (4) durational alimony; and (5) permanent alimony.

Temporary alimony (“spousal support”) may be awarded to assist a spouse in need while his/her divorce case (“dissolution of marriage”) is pending.

So called “bridge-the-gap” alimony may be available to a spouse who can show a “legitimate, identifiable, short-term need.” This form of alimony is intended to provide financial assistance to a spouse during the transition phase from being married to single.

Rehabilitative alimony may be used to “establish the capacity for self-support of the receiving spouse, either through redevelopment of previous skills or provision of the training necessary to develop potential supportive skills.”

As section 61.08(7) of the Florida Statutes provides, the “purpose of durational alimony is to provide a party with economic assistance for a set period of time following a marriage of short or moderate duration or following a marriage of long duration if there is no ongoing need for support on a permanent basis.”

And finally, permanent alimony was created and is available under certain, limited situations to provide for the needs of a former spouse as those needs were established during the parties’ marriage.

Should you have questions about how alimony may apply in your case, whether you are the potential payor (“obligor”) spouse or whether you are the potential payee (“obligee”) spouse, please do not hesitate to contact our experienced team at Coffman Family Law here or by calling 407-399-7440.

What is Equitable Distribution?

In a divorce (“dissolution of marriage”) case, the division of marital assets and liabilities
is mandatory. In Florida, this process (the “splitting of marital assets and debts”) is referred to as
“equitable distribution.”

Equitable distribution includes the following four steps:

  1. Identify the assets and debts;
  2. Classify whether the assets and debts are marital or non-marital;
  3. Value the marital assets and liabilities; and
  4. Distribute (“allocate” or “divide”) the marital assets and debts.

This process is codified in section 61.075 of the Florida Statues.

Many issues can arise related to the four-step process identified above. For instance, there may be an issue of whether or not a specific asset is marital or non-marital; there
may be an issue as to the value of a particular asset; or, there may be an issue on how an
asset/debt gets allocated. All of these issues need the attention of a skilled lawyer specializing in
family law.

If you would like to speak to us further about equitable distribution and how it relates to your case, contact us here or call 407-399-0704.

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