Financial Infidelity And Divorce 1

A new study has found that more than 7 million Americans, mostly men, have a hidden bank account or credit card account. It is not uncommon for spouses to hide financial issues from each other, such as concealing financial difficulties, secretly setting money aside for themselves, or incurring debt. This is known as “financial infidelity” and it can be just as detrimental to a relationship as an extramarital affair. Divorce is an event wherein a spouse’s secret financial life can come out and cause significant problems. For example, a party may be forced to expend significant resources trying to obtain the other party’s secret financial records. Additionally, if one spouse has been incurring debt, the other spouse may be financially responsible. These situations demonstrate how important it is to be open and honest about financials during the marriage. During the divorce process, you must be sure to alert your attorney if there are any warning signs of financial infidelity, such as: noticing that something is off, such as debits for cash from a debit card, unusual credit purchases, or accounts that don’t balance; refusal to talk about finances and refusal to account for larger purchases or disappearing cash; and one partner insisting upon controlling the finances without including the other partner.