Legal Question in Family Law in Minnesota

Re: Tax refund

Thank you for your question regarding the disbursement of a tax refund.

I would need additional information to provide and answer to your question. I presume from your question that you are currently in the midst of an ongoing divorce proceeding, or that your divorce was only recently completed. If you already have an attorney, the best thing you can do is contact your attorney and have him/her pursue the issue.

It is possible the refund is being held by the other attorney because there is not yet any agreement about how it will be disbursed. I have no idea whether there is a court order (divorce decree, temporary order) that may describe what should happen to the refund.

If the refund is made payable to you and your husband jointly, it cannot be cashed without your signature. It is possible, however, that it could be deposited into a joint account (where you and your husband are the joint account holders) without your signature. Thereafter, your husband could withdraw the funds from the bank.

You may feel free to contact me if you have additional questions. If you have an attorney already representing you, this issue should be directed to him/her.

Again, thank you for your question, and good luck.