Cheltenham Law, PLLC

The professionals you can turn to during a high-asset divorce

2026-06-02T11:10:46Z

In many high-asset divorces in Michigan, businesses, diverse investment portfolios and significant real estate holdings are often at stake. If you find yourself in this situation, you will need more than standard legal advice throughout the process. It is essential to form a coordinated team of professionals who will work alongside your lawyer toward a favorable outcome. This approach ensures that you get sufficient financial guidance to transition into your next chapter with stability and confidence.

Financial experts

When a divorce involves large assets, it helps to work with a forensic accountant and a certified divorce financial analyst (CDFA). A forensic accountant can find hidden assets and review complicated income sources. When it comes to the long-term effects of a settlement, a CDFA can project how your finances may look 5 to 10 years after the divorce.

Appraisers

Since Michigan is an equitable distribution state, marital assets are divided fairly but always on a 50/50 basis. If you have family business and luxury property, working with a business valuator and a real estate expert can provide an accurate estimation of these assets. Having the correct valuation is critical to ensure fair asset division during the divorce process.

Mental health specialists

During the stress of divorce mediation or court proceedings, a counselor or therapist can help you handle your emotions. They can help you stay focused on making clear decisions and working toward a favorable result, instead of reacting out of anger.

Helping you secure your future

Navigating a high-asset divorce demands a comprehensive understanding of how law and finance intersect. By working with different specialists, your lawyer can help you negotiate a fair settlement from a position backed by data-driven insights. With the right team, you can protect your present interests and long-term financial security.

3 types of assets that need professional valuation during divorce

2026-05-25T12:10:52Z

The divorce process generally requires a division of property. Unless spouses have clear marital agreements in place, they typically need to divide any assets that they purchased and income that they earned during the marriage. The rule that applies during property division requires a fair or equitable distribution of marital property. What is fair can be significantly different from one case to the next. Spouses need to identify their marital property, establish a fair market value for those resources and then either work together to settle property division or take the matter to court. Some assets can be very difficult to value, making a professional valuation necessary for a fair outcome, including the three assets below.

1. Real estate holdings

The house where spouses live together, the vacation home they have up north and any investment properties they share can be worth hundreds of thousands of dollars. What spouses paid likely isn't what the home is currently worth. Evaluation by a real estate professional is likely necessary.

2. Businesses and professional practices

If either spouse started, purchased or inherited a business during the marriage, they may need to address the value of the company when they divorce. There are numerous different ways to value a business or professional practice, and spouses often need the guidance of a professional to not only choose the right valuation method but apply it appropriately to the marital estate.

3. Specialty collections

Resources collected during the marriage, either jointly by the spouses or separately by one spouse, may require a professional valuation. Antiques, designer clothing and other high-value personal assets may require professional valuation for spouses to realistically estimate their worth. People who have the right support during the preparation stages of divorce can push for a fair outcome. Knowing what assets are worth is the first step toward a fair property division settlement.

Can a prenup waive your child support obligation?

2026-05-15T21:29:10Z

You are about to get married, and you have decided you want to use a prenuptial agreement. Maybe you are a business owner, and you want to ensure that your business is protected from a potential divorce in the future. Maybe you have far more assets than your prospective spouse, so you are just trying to keep them in your own name. But you are also conscious of future financial obligations. Perhaps you and your partner have talked about having children. If there is a divorce, you know it is likely that you will have to pay child support. Could you use the prenup to waive this obligation?

Child support cannot be adjusted in a prenup

No, you cannot use a prenup to make any decisions regarding child support, just like you cannot use it to address child custody. The key thing to remember is that child support is not for your partner, but for the child. It is meant to provide for their needs and uphold their standard of living. Therefore, even if your spouse agreed to it, they cannot allow you to waive this obligation because they would then be making the decision on your future child’s behalf. Additionally, divorce courts will look at the child’s best interests when determining things like custody or support. This cannot be determined in advance, before the child has even been born. A prenuptial agreement that includes these provisions would not be binding.

Using prenups properly

Prenuptial agreements can be very helpful and can protect your assets, but you can see why it is so important to understand how to use them correctly and what legal options you have.

Can the courts stop a parent from moving after a divorce?

2026-04-30T08:53:35Z

When parents in Michigan divorce, they typically share custody afterward. They need to see each other frequently to exchange custody and communicate regularly about their children. Sometimes, one spouse plans to move on, which may require moving away from the community where they lived while married. The non-custodial parent who has the children less of the time and whose address is not their legal address might accept a new position in the Upper Peninsula or start a relationship with someone living in another state. Do non-custodial parents need to wait until their children are adults to move away if they share custody?

A modification could help

Michigan does restrict relocations in shared custody scenarios. However, those restrictions apply to relocations that change the children's primary address and involve a move 100 miles or more away from their current residence. A parent who only has visitation or limited parenting time could relocate, although doing so could have an impact on their custody order. They may need to discuss a modification with their co-parent that allows them to take the children for extended periods over the holidays and their summer vacation from school. Parents may be able to work out a new arrangement amicably, or the matter may require the involvement of a family law judge. The courts typically can't prevent one parent from leaving the state if they do not intend to take their children with them. Understanding the rules that govern parental relocations in a shared custody scenario can help parents take appropriate steps for their own protection. Moving away is often possible, even when sharing custody.

The link between marriage age and divorce odds

2026-04-13T19:23:57Z

You may have heard people caution against marrying too young. They often warn that many of these young marriages ultimately end up in divorce. Parents may tell their young adult children to wait longer, for example, before tying the knot. But are there any statistics to back this up? Is it a real phenomenon that can be tracked, or is it just something that people have repeated so often that they now believe it?

Tracking the ideal marriage age

It is important to note that overall statistics cannot necessarily be applied to every individual marriage. For example, there are statistics showing that young marriages are more likely to end in divorce, but there are also plenty of people who get married at a relatively young age and stay married. Every marriage is unique. What the statistics find, however, is that the ideal marriage age is typically 32. Divorce odds climb by roughly 11% for every year before that. As such, getting married at 18 is much more likely to lead to divorce, though it is not guaranteed. However, waiting past the age of 32 means that the odds of divorce start to go back up again. They do not rise quite as quickly. Instead, they go up by roughly 5% per year. Getting married at 35 is slightly more likely to lead to divorce than getting married at 32.

Navigating a divorce

Do you believe that your marriage is headed for a divorce this year? If so, it is important to understand all of your legal rights and obligations when it comes to property division, child custody schedules and more.

Addressing deferred compensation in a high-asset divorce

2026-03-27T14:27:51Z

Couples divorcing in Michigan either settle their economic matters cooperatively or rely on a judge to apply equitable distribution rules to their assets and debts. It is common for spouses to disagree about what assets are subject to division, how to value those resources and the most appropriate way to actually split them. When either spouse is a successful professional with a contract that includes deferred compensation, that future pay can potentially complicate property division negotiations. Understanding how to address deferred compensation can limit opportunities for unnecessary conflict.

Is deferred compensation divisible in a divorce?

From a legal standpoint, deferred compensation is often subject to division during divorce proceedings. Any income earned during the marriage is potentially marital property. However, from a practical standpoint, deferred compensation may not be available to divide when the divorce occurs. Deferred compensation could include stock options that may not be available for several more years. The compensation package could also include bonuses for long-term retention of a position or meeting critical job performance goals. Spouses may need support determining what portion of the deferred compensation is subject to division. They may also need assistance determining a reasonable value for the deferred compensation. Especially in cases where workers may have the future right to acquire stock or the bonus they may later receive depends on their job performance, accurately estimating the value of deferred compensation can become a hurdle. Spouses may have to employ creative solutions to effectively offset the value of deferred compensation as part of a property division settlement. People preparing for high-asset divorces often need assistance as they evaluate marital resources and set goals for the process ahead. Deferred compensation is one of many stumbling blocks that can complicate the property division process otherwise.

Can the same lawyer represent both parties for a prenup?

2026-03-14T22:34:25Z

The purpose of a prenuptial agreement is to clarify expectations for marriage and/or limit the opportunities for conflict in the event of a divorce. Spouses who agree on certain terms in advance may be able to pursue uncontested divorces. Drafting a prenuptial agreement before marriage is beneficial because it requires that spouses disclose their resources to one another. They must also discuss their expectations for the marriage, as well as what might happen if they ever divorce. Spouses usually cooperate with one another while drafting a prenuptial agreement. Can spouses share a lawyer while drafting a prenuptial agreement?

Separate representation is necessary

Even in cases where spouses have already reached an agreement regarding what assets they intend to designate as separate property and how they structure property division in the event of a divorce, it is advisable for each spouse to retain separate legal representation while reviewing the prenuptial agreement. Having one attorney manage the entire process could lead to questions about the validity of the document later. If one spouse can credibly claim that they did not understand the terms included in the contract, the family courts may set it aside during a divorce. Attempting to represent both parties to a contract is typically a conflict of interest. One lawyer cannot give truly balanced and objective guidance to both spouses. To prevent the future invalidation of the agreement, each spouse should have an attorney review the document on their behalf. Engaged couples who choose to protect themselves contractually may need to arrange for two separate family law attorneys to review the document before they finalize a prenuptial agreement. Doing so can minimize the likelihood of a dispute about the document later.

The risk of commingling an inheritance

2026-02-26T13:30:22Z

If you receive an inheritance while you are married, you may be tempted to commingle it. There are a few different ways that you can do this, as commingling just means mixing it together with other marital assets. Examples include:

Jointly buying something, such as a house
Using the inheritance to pay off shared debts or bills
Investing the inheritance in a shared investment portfolio
Storing the inheritance in a joint bank account that you both have access to

If you do this, be aware that commingling the inheritance can cause it to change status. When you first receive it, even though you are already married, it likely qualifies as a separate inheritance and a direct gift to you as an individual. Once it has been commingled, it then qualifies as a marital asset.

Altering property division

If you stay married, this distinction may not matter. But if you get divorced, it can be incredibly significant.

After all, couples generally get to keep separate assets, so you would retain the entire inheritance if your spouse filed for divorce. But couples do have to divide marital assets. This means you may lose a portion of your parents’ inheritance to your ex-spouse if your marriage ends. You would have to split up those funds along with other marital assets, such as your income from the marriage, benefits or commissions you earned and major assets that the two of you bought or acquired together.

Complex divorce cases

Navigating property division can certainly make a divorce complex, especially when handling inheritances and other high-value assets. It can help to work with an experienced attorney as you explore your legal options.

The difference between legal and physical child custody

2026-02-13T11:35:20Z

Parents who divorce or stop living together generally have to negotiate custody arrangements. They usually have the authority to set their own terms and submit them to the courts for approval. If they cannot settle terms with one another, then the matter goes to court, where a family law judge decides what terms to impose. In either scenario, the parents typically need to address both physical custody and legal custody. Understanding the distinction between these two critical forms of custody can help parents protect themselves and their children as their family circumstances change.

Physical custody is parenting time

People talking about custody issues often specifically mean the time they get to spend with their children. The division of parenting time is a critical consideration when parents or judges establish custody orders. Still, legal custody also requires careful consideration. Legal custody gives a parent the authority to make decisions about their child. If parents share physical custody, they often also share legal custody. They need to have systems in place to communicate with one another and discuss major decisions about their children before they take any significant steps to alter their circumstances. Factors including the number of children in the family, the availability of the parents and their prior experience managing the children's affairs can influence the optimal distribution of legal and physical custody. Discussing family circumstances with a legal professional can help parents understand their rights and evaluate different custody options. Most parents need to secure a portion of both legal and physical custody to play a sustainable and significant role in the lives of their children.

The startling rise in the gray divorce rate

2026-02-02T15:05:43Z

Divorce rates in the United States have risen and fallen at certain times. When no-fault divorce first became legal, for example, there was a substantial rise in divorce cases. But for many young couples today, the divorce rate is actually falling. Interestingly, however, this declining trend does not apply to Baby Boomers or others in older age brackets. These cases are often referred to as gray divorces. They have been increasing by a substantial amount in recent years. For anyone over 45, the divorce rate has been going up. For those over 65, the divorce rate has tripled in the past three decades.

Financial complexities

Gray divorce cases are often financially complicated. On one hand, older couples often have a larger store of marital assets that must be divided. They have accumulated more wealth, savings, investments and tangible assets. They may own multiple homes, vehicles and other expensive items. Simply by being together for so long, more of their lives are intertwined, and they have had longer to build up their wealth, which now has to be split. Another issue to consider is that people in this age bracket are often planning for retirement or long-term care needs. They have to think about the future. A divorce is going to dramatically impact their finances, and they need to know what this is going to mean for their budget moving forward – and how they can preserve assets that they were counting on. For Baby Boomers and other older couples, it is very important to understand all of the legal steps to take when navigating a gray divorce.