Advise from the New York Family Law Attorneys at McCormick & Phillips, N.Y. No equitable distribution agreement is complete without a credible evaluation of probable tax consequences of the proposed asset division. Different types of tax liability apply to different types of assets and divisions of assets and income such as the following:

• Real estate
• Bank accounts
• Investment accounts
• Retirement accounts
• Business assets
• Spousal maintenance

For this reason, we encourage our potential and existing clients to seek counsel from an attorney with ample experience handling financially complex divorces. We typically advise our clients to invest in analysis by a tax law expert who can help forecast the tax consequences of the planned asset division.

Equitable May Not Be Equitable When Taxes are Considered

Another way of putting it is as follows: Although you may think you have designed a 50-50 split of assets, the government's ability to tap into those assets may alter the balance. This is something to keep in mind in case you and your spouse have considered a "do-it-yourself" divorce. What you think is fair may not actually be fair when all tax issues are considered, including the following:

• Taxability of child support or alimony versus other assets
• Anticipated impact of capital gains tax when an asset is eventually sold
• Impact of child care credits, child dependent credits and child tax credits
• Tax liabilities of the lower wage earner versus the higher wage earner
• Expected changes in tax laws

Contact a well-respected New York family law attorney at the law offices of McCormack & Phillips in Rockland County. Other lawyers often refer potential clients to our Nyack law firm, confident in our ability to handle challenging issues including careful consideration of tax consequences in connection with property division agreements.