Legal Question in Family Law in Oregon

Re: Corporate assets in divorce court

YOUR QUESTION:

If a husband and wife divorce and he is 100% owner of a corporation that they started together over 7 years prior to the divorce does she legally have any rights to the corporate assets?

ANSWER:

YES. Assuming they started the business together (even though seven years prior to divorce), absent some reason(s) for doing otherwise, wife will most likely be awarded one-half of the value of the corporation. Either she gets half the stock, or he will have to come up with enough money to buy-out her interest.

The fact that he owns the 100% of the corporation does not mean that it is beyond the reach of the divorce court judge. The divorce court has the power to rearrange and reassign property ownership interests without regard to which party's name is on the stock certificate, or the deed, or the motor vehicle title certificate, etc.

LAWRENCE D. GORIN

http://www.divorcesource.com/OR/pages/ldgorin.html

Law Offices of L.D. Gorin

521 S.W. Clay St., Suite 205

Portland, Oregon 97201

E-mail: [email protected]