If you are an Illinois spouse who is getting divorced, there are many things you need to know when it comes time to discuss your marital property portfolio. Many assets are easy to identify as joint property. Determining the value of things in shifting market conditions, such as homes or other real property, can be challenging. Even more challenging may be the determination of business interested such as restricted stock or stock options.
Forbes recommends that if you believe your spouse may not be forthcoming with all asset information, you should verify income and other benefits with the human resources department at the company that employs them. If it comes to pass that your spouse is entitled to stock options or restricted stock, you should be aware of some of the issues involved in figuring out how much those assets are worth.
Valuing stock options and restricted stocks is no easy task. In addition to the fact that future information remains unknown, other issues can come into play. For example, options that have not yet vested may not be able to be considered part of a marital estate. In other cases, the date of vesting may impact the ultimate value of the asset. On top of all of this, you should investigate any potential tax implications related to the stock options or restricted stocks.
If you are interested in learning more about how to handle the division of stock options or other business interests when getting divorced, please visit our Illinois marital dissolution website.
