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    Why You Should Protect Your Business In A Divorce

    Everyone wants to believe that their marriage will last a lifetime. When you consider that nearly half of all marriages end in divorce, there’s no harm in securing your assets and protecting your business in a divorce.

    Divorces are often messy and, even with a good prenup you could find yourself losing a lot of money. If you own business, then you've got an awful lot of money to lose. Losing your business, or even just part of it, can drastically cut into your income and could even spell disaster for your business.

    Dividing a business in a divorce isn't easy. There are some complicating factors that can make it even messier. Businesses are considered an asset in California divorce court and will be divided as such based on whether or not the business is a separate or community property. Whether you owned the property before getting married, inherited it, and how much time and effort the two of you put into the business can also affect the outcome.

    If the business is your business and you're the one who put in all the work, then it's only natural that you'd want to protect it. You wouldn't want someone to come in and ruin all your good work and take something that you put your heart and soul into. This is why protecting your business in a divorce is so important. Especially if it's a family business that has been in the family for generations. Your parents and grandparents expect you to take care of it and protect it.

    If you've not got a good prenuptial agreement in place then finding the right lawyer becomes even more important. Even the best prenuptial agreement needs a good lawyer to make sure that it's upheld. Your spouse may try and claim that things have changed since the agreement was signed and that they are entitled to more now.

    Even if you choose to buy out your spouse's share of the business, you'll find you have to pay much more than their share of the business is worth. This is because the company would still be making money and it's money that your spouse is now missing out on. You may find yourself having to pay them the value of the business and the amount they are expected to have made if they kept their shares. So not even buying back your share of the business from them is a viable idea.

    You put a lot of work into your business. You built something from the ground up, and you've dedicated your time and money to it. You take measures to protect it from competitors and threats. You need to take steps to protect it from a divorce too. Even if you believe that your marriage will last forever, there's no harm in protecting your business in a divorce.