Strategic asset protection. High-stakes litigation competence.
Some divorces revolve around custody. Others hinge on support. And some are about one thing: money.
Not how your “money language” differs from your spouse over household budgeting. Not whether you should have joint accounts. We’re talking about complex assets. Privately held corporations. Executive compensation packages. All cash business. Stock options. Multiple properties in different states. Financial terrain designed to confuse, delay, and starve out the other party.
If you’re in this kind of divorce, you already know it. You’ve seen the control. You’ve felt the withholding. And you already know most family law firms aren’t equipped to handle it.
We are.
What We Mean by Complex Assets
At Hart Ginney LLP, complex assets are not an add-on service line. They are a core litigation strength.
We handle cases involving:
- Restricted stock units and options (RSUs, ISOs, NSOs). Vesting schedules. Tax implications. Executive compensation gamesmanship.
- Privately held businesses. Family-owned businesses, partnerships, S corps, LLCs, professional practices. Ownership disputes. Valuation manipulation.
- Separate property tracing and commingled assets. Real property with complex contribution histories. Mixed character business growth. Asset titling games.
- Alternative compensation structures. Deferred bonuses. Phantom stock. Carried interest.
- Asset concealment and dissipation. Off-books accounts. Asset movement through trusts or related entities.
These are not matters for generic family law discovery. They require precision forensic strategy and courtroom competence that can stand up to sophisticated opposition.
Patterns of Financial Abuse (When Present)
In many complex asset cases, financial abuse is present. Sometimes it’s subtle, sometimes flagrant.
We see:
- Starvation tactics. One spouse cutting off access to community funds to gain litigation leverage either during the marriage or after one spouse decides to leave.
- Information hoarding. Withholding or selectively disclosing key financial documents, or thinking that disclosures are mere suggestions.
- Complexity as control. Using business structures or opaque compensation to hide income or assets.
- Asset manipulation. Strategic devaluation or movement of assets right before, or during the divorce process.
Our Approach to Complex Asset Division
- Forensic fluency. We work with top-tier forensic accountants, valuation experts, and tax professionals. We know what is admissible, what is persuasive, and what is not.
- Aggressive discovery strategy. We do not rely on voluntary disclosures. We compel what matters, and we litigate aggressively when stonewalled.
- Business valuation leadership. We understand how businesses are structured and valued, and how owners attempt to distort that value in divorce proceedings.
- Restricted stock expertise. We know how to handle RSUs, options, and related compensation with both financial and legal precision.
- Property characterization. We build clear, evidence-backed narratives around separate property claims and community property exposure.
- Trial readiness. We prepare every case as if it will go to trial because we are strategic litigators and opposing counsel knows this. And we know the judge and how to present the issues in a way that makes sense to them.
We also believe in working with your existing financial team, or helping you make connections to build your own. We believe in working with financial planners, CPAs and accountants.
You’ll leave this divorce with a strategy, not just a judgment.
Who We Represent
- High-net-worth individuals seeking strategic protection of legitimate assets.
- Spouses facing information asymmetry — the other party holds most of the financial knowledge or control.
- Entrepreneurs and business owners seeking competent handling of their business interests.
- Executives and professionals with complex compensation structures.
- Clients who have been burned by prior counsel lacking the litigation capacity for complex asset work.
Why Hart Ginney LLP
We do not dabble in complex asset cases. We litigate them.
We are not intimidated by sophisticated opposing counsel or complex financial structures. We know how to unwind them, value them, and position our clients for the best possible outcome whether through settlement or at trial.
In cases where financial abuse and asset complexity intersect, few firms match our fluency in both the legal and psychological dimensions of the case.
If You Are Facing This
You already know if your case belongs in this category.
Most lawyers will not say this aloud. We will: the side with the stronger legal team has a major advantage in these cases.
We are ready to be that team.