High-Net-Worth Divorce Attorneys in Austin

high net worth divorce attorneys in Austin, Texas

Navigating High-Net-Worth Divorce in Austin

Navigating a high-net-worth divorce in Austin can be an intricate process. It demands a deeper understanding of Texas divorce laws and requires strategic planning to ensure a fair and successful outcome. High-net-worth divorces often involve significant assets, including businesses, real estate, investments, inheritances, and other valuable assets. At Deyerle Silva Smith, our attorneys are experienced in high-net-worth divorce cases in Austin. Deyerle Silva Smith Family Law PLLC. offers clients personalized and comprehensive legal services to protect your interests and get the best possible outcome from each case.

What is a High-Net-Worth Divorce?

Many wonder what makes a high-net-worth divorce different from a traditional divorce. The simple answer is that a high-net-worth divorce differs significantly from a traditional divorce due to the substantial assets and complex financial matters involved. A high-net-worth individual is someone who has at leat a minimum of $1 million in liquid assets.

High net-worth asset division in Texas

Substantial Assets

The amount of assets involved with high-net-worth divorce cases in Texas need to be evaluated meticulously. This includes properties, high-value investments, retirement accounts, and business interests. 

  • Properties: The real estate portfolio of a high-net-worth individual may encompass multiple residential properties, vacation homes, and commercial properties, each requiring independent appraisal to determine their current market value accurately. 
  • High-value investments: This includes stocks, bonds, mutual funds, and other securities that necessitate thorough analysis to understand their worth and potential future performance. 
  • Retirement Accounts: This also includes considering 401(k) plans, pensions, and IRAs, which often represent a significant portion of the marital estate and require careful consideration to account for tax implications and future benefits. 
  • Business Assets: These interests add another layer of complexity, as determining the true value of a business can involve evaluating financial statements, understanding market conditions, and considering the impact of the divorce on the business’s operations.

All of the assets listed above need to be carefully evaluated in order to be safeguarded and distributed fairly. To make a fair evaluation, additional expertise from a financial expert may be needed.

Complex Financial Arrangements

These divorces often require detailed evaluations of financial documents, forensic accounting, and valuations of businesses and properties. Here’s where attorney collaboration with a financial expert can be beneficial for your case:

  • Detailed Evaluations of Financial Documents: Comprehensive examination of tax returns, bank statements, investment portfolios, and loan agreements to provide an accurate overview of the marital estate.
  • Forensic Accounting: Forensic accountants trace financial transactions, identify discrepancies, uncover hidden assets, and provide accurate business valuations, ensuring full financial disclosure.
  • Business Valuations: Analyzing financial health, assets, liabilities, earnings potential, and market position to determine the fair market value of businesses using methods like the income approach and market approach.
  • Property Valuations: Professional appraisers evaluate real estate holdings, including primary residences, vacation homes, rental properties, and commercial real estate, considering location, condition, and market trends.
  • Tax Implications: Tax advisors assess the tax consequences of asset division and provide strategies to minimize tax liabilities, ensuring a tax-efficient settlement structure.
  • Trusts and Estates: Reviewing trust and estate documents to determine their impact on asset division and ensure trust assets are appropriately considered in the divorce settlement.
  • Pre- and Post-Nuptial Agreements: Reviewing and enforcing prenuptial or postnuptial agreements to protect assets and ensure their terms are upheld in the divorce settlement.

Higher Stakes

The larger amount of assets involved with a high-net-worth divorce requires a meticulous and thorough approach in order to ensure every asset is accounted for. With the assets and financial considerations listed above the stakes are high and there’s no room for error. Working with experienced divorce attorneys and financial experts can help you avoid making mistakes that will negatively impact the outcome of your case. Having a highly specialized team of divorce and financial experts can make all the difference in high-net-worth divorce cases.

Understanding Texas Divorce Laws

In Texas, understanding the state’s divorce laws is crucial to effectively manage a high-net-worth divorce. Texas is a community property state, meaning that all property acquired during the marriage is considered jointly owned and subject to division upon divorce. However, it’s important to understand that just because Texas is a community property state, it doesn’t necessarily mean that property will be split equally. Instead the court will determine a split that is “just and right.” This method applies to both property distribution and debt distribution when terminating a marriage. Furthermore it’s important to understand the difference between community property and separate property in Texas.

texas laws

Community Property vs. Separate Property in Texas

Sometimes, assets or property are considered separate property and are not subject to division during a divorce. Separate property in Texas includes: 

Community property is all other assets acquired during the marriage that are not separate property. All community property is subject to a just and right division between spouses. 

An experienced high-net-worth divorce attorney in Austin can help you evaluate your assets to determine which assets would be considered separate or community property.

Why High-Net-Worth Divorces are More Complex

High-net-worth divorce in Austin is typically more complex due to the amount of assets involved. Additionally there can be tax implications. Dividing substantial assets can have significant tax consequences, necessitating careful planning and strategy to minimize tax liabilities. Spousal support and child support can also be more complicated. Additionally, in some cases, one spouse may attempt to hide assets, making it essential to conduct thorough investigations and forensic accounting. For these reasons working with someone who has experience working on these types of cases in Austin is important. They can spot red flags and help you avoid making any costly mistakes

Working With an Experienced High-Net-Worth Austin Divorce Attorney

Achieving a successful outcome in a high-net-worth divorce requires strategic planning and careful execution. When facing a high-net-worth divorce in Austin it is important to have the right team behind you. At Deyerle Silva Smith, our team of dedicated attorneys has extensive experience handling high-net-worth divorces in Austin. We offer tailored legal strategies to protect your interests and achieve favorable outcomes. Here’s just a glimpse at the services we provide our clients with personalized legal counsel, expert negotiation skills, and litigation experience.

Austin family law attorneys

Personalized Legal Counsel

We understand that every situation is unique and take the time to understand your situation. Then we develop a customized legal strategy to meet your unique needs and desires.

Expert Negotiation Skills

Our attorneys are skilled negotiators, working diligently to reach amicable settlements that protect your financial interests

Litigation Experience

If litigation becomes necessary, our attorneys are seasoned litigators prepared to advocate for you in court.

At Deyerle Silva Smith, we are committed to providing exceptional legal services to high-net-worth individuals navigating the complexities of divorce in Austin. Contact us today to schedule a consultation and learn more about how we can help you achieve the best possible outcome in your high-net-worth divorce case.

Our expertise includes:

Achieving the best outcomes

See what our clients are saying about their case outcomes. 

"Candice, Ashley, and Laurie are highly professional, strategic, thorough, and above all intelligent. They helped me stay organized (which is no small feat), gracefully pivoted in the face of challenges, and provided emotional clarity in times of distress, even when those challenges and distressful situations were due to missteps by me. In my case, Candice routinely exhibited prescience regarding which matters deserved focus and which matters were distractions, which saved time, and money. Ashley expertly delivered to the court clear, concise, and highly effective summaries of complex topics. More than once, Candice and Ashley noticed and brought to light critical details that easily would have been missed and that had a huge impact. I couldn't say enough about how much this team helped me through my ordeal."
Greg Banister
"Lianna inspired confidence from my first contact with her. Her calming demeanor and good information convinced me to let her handle my divorce, and I believe that was a good decision to this day. She handled my divorce very professionally and respectfully and with favorable results. I can easily recommend Team Lianna for divorce matters."
Neil Sembower
"Incredibly experienced - Produces great results Kody was the best decision I made when choosing legal representation. His experience was invaluable in helping me understand the ramifications of each option and choices available during my divorce proceedings. The professional nature of Kody and his team was evident by their responsiveness and execution. Preparation meant everything as we headed into mediation and I felt supported and empowered by his informed and organized approach. He was sensitive and honest about the cost/benefit of each complex element of our assets/liabilities which led to a successful agreement and avoided costly litigation. Divorce is a major life event that has a long lasting impact on everyone involved. His guidance during this difficult time has made the experience positive for me and has laid a strong framework for my future and my children's future as I move forward."
Alex
"Divorce sucks. The issues keep coming years later. No other way to phrase it. My experience with the firm was top notch. I retained the firm for a mediation in an effort to have more visitation with my two young boys. My attorney (Lianna Smith) took my concerns and helped build a plan around what wanted. During all the times of frustration, Lianna would constantly talk me off the ledge and remind me to play the long game. Her paralegal (Laurie Theriot) was always available to answer a question or look up something. Laurie is a jewel!"
Richard Lazo
"Ultimately what needed to get done was done. But throughout the several months I used their service, I had to prompt them to do things. I also caught numerous errors that I feel like they should have caught prior to sending me something to approve. Fortunately I have had experience reviewing legal documents, though I’m definitely not an attorney. When I would send Laurie, the paralegal assigned to me, an email she was very responsive, so that was a good experience. I never had trouble getting ahold of them, I just usually had to prompt the communication and I did not think it was appropriate that I had to point out as many errors in legal documents as I did. If you are not prone to reading everything, proceed with caution."
Michael Bullock
"Knowledgeable, Realistic, Compassionate, & Gets Results When first meeting with Mr. Silva, he asked me, ideally, what I would like to get out of the divorce process and to prioritize them. He walked me thru how the legal process would work and then laid out a strategy to try to reach objectives we had set and agreed upon. Mr. Silva was very knowledgeable of the law and of the Williamson County court system. Mr. Silva and his team were always very responsive whenever I had a question or concern regarding my case. Mr. Silva valued my time and concerns. When is was all said and done, the strategy that Mr. Silva had laid out, worked, and we were able to achieve our top three priorities in the case. I would definitely retain him again in the future if the need ever arose."
Ryan
"I needed an understanding divorce lawyer to help me complete complicated and detailed divorce. One that had been winding through the process in Washington DC and needed to start over and be re-executed in Texas. Laurie Theriot and her paralegal Candace Deyerle were amazing to work with and so helpful on the detail work. Thanks to the whole thing in helping set me free. I could not recommend them enough."
Victoria G.
"I went through a difficult divorce recently that required experience with LGBTQ issues. Picking Kody for my legal counsel was the best choice I could have made. I knew from the first meeting with Kody that he was completely invested in my case and would give it the attention it would require. He proved to be an exceptional lawyer. He was fair-minded, professional, and realistic at all times, even when my ex-wife’s lawyer was trying to make it extremely difficult to stay civil. He knew when to be firm and unwavering with the opposing counsel, which ultimately resulted in an agreement without having to go to court. Kody and his paralegal, Priscilla, are an excellent team. They were friendly and responsive at all times. The billing of my case was handled in a very prudent and efficient manner. I wouldn't hesitate to hire Kody again in the future."
Anonymous
"Outstanding Job Lianna listen to me and was compassion to my situation. She worked with me and guided me as to what I would be expecting during the whole divorce. She outline detail by detail the steps that were going to be taken. She was always there to answer my concerns and questions. During the mediation she fought all the way to make sure that I got my fair share. Her attention to detail was awesome. I couldn't had asked for a better lawyer than her. I had met with other lawyers before her and they didn't acknowledge the pain I was going through. However, when I met with her she listen and was so understanding toward my pain that I immediately knew she will fight for me."
Minerva

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