anyone (lawyers especially) know?

[skinut2234]

as stated before here my wife and I are divorcing.. in the process of mediation i was taking notes (about who owns what)- Then I talked to my accountant- (I have to wait until Monday to ask attorney)- My wife is currently living in her moms old house (which is owned by the estate). he mom is in a nursing home and designated oldest sister as executor (not my wife)- there are 4 sisters including her- The family formed a partnership LLC which is the house and about 40 acres of land. The accountant stated that my wife should technically be "owner" of 1/5 of that- (depending on what the paperwork says)- he made it sound like- I too am entitled to count that as something she needs to disclose and split? anyone know if that is correct?

[central]

If it is her inheritance, then no, that is typically not an asset you have any claim to in a divorce. She should probably disclose it, but it won't be factored in.

[d0nnivain]

Your wife's assets at the time of your divorce do not include the promise of her future ownership in the mother's estate. The mother is alive. The assets belongs to the mother. The mother could disinherit your STBXW or spend her money. There is nothing there for you to claim.

[Ahurtgirl]

You have no claim to any future inheritance she may or may not receive. Funny how who gets what becomes so

important during a divorce. Yuck.

[skinut2234]

OK I did more research (and I will add clarity) I know I am not privy to family $$$ and inheritance. I spoke with another attorney who specializes in Matrimony. He stated that she still needs to disclose that during mediation. Just her piece. She is 1/5 the owner now of whatever it's worth. I checked over our entire mediation agreement and it is not mentioned once. The partnership was altered and revised during the marriage. I found a document stating she is a 30% limited partner. I get the fact that she will get money eventually when her mom passes- but should this not be brought up now while in discussion and mediation? the attorney stated this affect alimony payment

[db1984]

My wife is currently living in her moms old house (which is owned by the estate).

 

 

 

Owned by the Estate of "WHO"? If her mother is in a nursing home, she is alive and there is no estate.

 

 

Who exactly owns the house? You would have to do a title search. If the deed was transferred from the mother to the LLC, as you mentioned, I don't think that falls into your ex-wife's personal assets as it is technically a corporation.

[happyhusband0005]

It sounds like your wife owns 30% of the LLC which holds the property. SO that is an asset currently in her name which has value and should be disclosed. Owning part and LLC is like owning stock in a company. She could sell her ownership etc. depending on the operating agreement. If she was filing for a loan it would go on her personal financial statement as an asset. You should get all the formation documents and LLC Operating agreement.

 

On another note though, the family may have formed and LLC which your wife is 30% owner of but not put the land into it yet. It may be directed by the will that upon your MIL's death the LLC inherits the property.

 

So you have some research to do unless you know the answer to the second part already.

[carhill]

As an observation, since it was stated that there are four sisters including the estranged wife, and the accountant stated the wife owned a 1/5 share, that would indicate to me that another party was involved that is not a sibling. Any idea who that is? Perhaps not an issue for divorce purposes but good to know anyway.

 

OP, do you live in a community property state?

 

If yes, has your wife demonstrated that her participation in the asset known as 'house LLC' was from sole and separate means? In other words, no co-mingling of community assets (your and her income while married, as example) and expenses of, investments or processes related to the LLC?

 

Whatever you agree to, be sure it's specific. The LLC should show up in financial disclosures and will be disposed of as you/she see fit in your settlement agreement. When we got divorced there were a number of properties, an incompetent person, and a couple businesses involved so we made sure to include future claim waivers to forestall future blowback on a very dynamic situation.

 

IMO, unless your wife sucked out significant marital assets to fund or maintain the LLC, I'd not make it a point of contention, especially if she's going with the flow and not throwing up roadblocks or getting greedy. The less contentious, the less the lawyers get enriched and the sooner you get on with life. Good luck!

[skinut2234]

sorry- it's confusing to me so I keep making errors. It's an LP- not an LLC. I am not sure I know the difference. The house I am sure is owned by the family partnership. She is also living there at a reduced rent. By 1/5 I am referring to: Mother (still alive) and 4 sisters. So by that- she is 1/5 owner (or partner) i should say. They own more than one parcel of land (several)- My concern is this (I am not being greedy)- is that should it be disclosed? What happens if mom dies- and she gets XXXXXX dollars or land? Would that not change my alimony payment? I don't want to argue unnecessarily but I also need to look out for myself and insure I am not paying more than I should

[Wookin Pa Nub]

It was hard to follow all the specifics but if you're wife was part beneficiary of the a trust from inheritance than you have no claim. I think an exception might be if the assets in the trust appreciated during marriage then you may be entitled to half of the appreciation.

[happyhusband0005]

You'll need to see all the documents governing the LP. I believe that if the LP does currently hold the title to the property and you wife owns part of it, then I think that ownership should be disclosed and used in any calculation.

[BluesPower]

as stated before here my wife and I are divorcing.. in the process of mediation i was taking notes (about who owns what)- Then I talked to my accountant- (I have to wait until Monday to ask attorney)- My wife is currently living in her moms old house (which is owned by the estate). he mom is in a nursing home and designated oldest sister as executor (not my wife)- there are 4 sisters including her- The family formed a partnership LLC which is the house and about 40 acres of land. The accountant stated that my wife should technically be "owner" of 1/5 of that- (depending on what the paperwork says)- he made it sound like- I too am entitled to count that as something she needs to disclose and split? anyone know if that is correct?

 

No you are not... It will be part of the estate until the mother dies, and even then you will not be able to touch her inheritance.

 

Nothing like that becomes community property unless funds get co-mingled in the joint bank account.

 

Your lawyer will tell you the same thing. I am surprised that an accountant would not know that already or would not defer that question to an attorney.

[Mrin]

Murky as others have noted. I would insist on her disclosing her interest in the LP and then dig into what assets that LP has, if anything.

 

As for her future inheritance changing spousal support - in most states that wouldn't matter. That being said in Most states you could probably write something into your spousal support agreement that basically says if she gets a windfall in the form of future inheritance it would lower your spousal support payment. Spousal support or alimony is meant to provide a runway for a divorced spouse rather than some sort of prolonged distribution of marital assets or penalty. I would think that if you were on good terms with your soon-to-be ex-wife you should be able to negotiate something that basically says if she inherits a bunch of money in the near future then she doesn't need as much of a Runway from you.

[carhill]

OP, if your estranged wife is a limited partner in a FLP (family limited partnership) she would be subordinate to the general partner(s) (her sister, the executrix?) and generally able to realize gains only by transfer of her 'share' to a family member. Otherwise, she's basically along for the ride until a triggering event (death of the parents usually) occurs.

 

If spousal support is to be calculated/negotiated, then her education, employability and employment history become factors, as well as her COL. That reduced rent, if documented, could be one factor in COL.

 

IMO, the goal is to get the two of you on the same page signing an agreement and keep it out of the hands of a judge to point fingers and decide. Whatever it takes to get there would be my mission. Since you have a lawyer, they're the first point of contact. Sure, do your research to ask pertinent questions and make affirmative statements to reduce time and money wasted. Rely on them for competent legal advice.

[d0nnivain]

An LLC is a limited liability corporation. An LP is a limited partnership. Both are governed by the agreements that created them. Nobody can give you advice about your STBXW's present entitlement to anything without reading the governance documents. The biggest differences are probably tax considerations but if your wife's interests are merely those of a limited partner she may not be fully vested in an entitlement to anything.

 

 

Also depending on when the LP was created, Medicaid could still theoretically take everything if your wife's family is not past the statutory "look back period." I think it's 5 years.

 

 

So if your wife has a present entitlement to some asset, yes that should be considered in your divorce calculations. However, just because people expect that she may inherit from her mother in the future when the mother dies, the expected amounts are not certain & therefore do not count.