I am on the verge of filing for divorce.  My question is how to explain the shortfalls in deposits into our home accounts from my business draws.  I don't gamble, have never had any drug problems, and have no other vices.  Any good explanation I can come up with after my wife's attorney notes the discrepancies?  Thanks in advance.

You don't have to account for the $. Tell them it was spent on recreation!

You owe no explanation. Don't offer one, and remain mum. Open your mouth, and you'll shoot yourself in the foot.

This is a case where Less is More!  The LESS you say, the better it'll be.  Any story you create gives her atty the opportunity to pick it apart.  
If confronted with this, obiviously you can't dispute the facts.  The proveable fact is you withdrew more money than you deposited.  OK.  
The rest was pocket money.  You spent it.  No, you didn't keep track of it.  Being careless with your money is not criminal.  Say "I can't explain where it went, everything is so expensive these days."
They'll think you have a separate account.  They will do a records search to see if you have a money stash that you're not declaring.  They'll not find one.  

By the way, if you decide to stash a little pocket money...  skim small amounts from your weekly expenses & keep it in CASH, in a safe place.  Even while getting a divorce, you have a right to have enough money to live.

A change of subject...  get a washer to clean your computer hard drive.  
I hope you used a hobby phone.  

Seriously though, I really doubt that an atty will waste their expensive time digging into past expenses...  his job is to find current assets for the split...  and to get his cut.  If the soon to be ex, figuires it out...  they'll dig harder to find your money stash, which isn't there.

Best of luck to you.
skb  

-- Modified on 7/23/2008 7:26:47 AM

But you are not obligated to account for every penny that you earn. You, as an American citizen, have a right to eat fancy lunches without getting a receipt, Bowl all afternoon on your day off and treat the guys in the next lane to dinner and drinks, play golf, hand random amounts of cash to total strangers and do just about anything else you want to say you did with YOUR money.  

Get a good lawyer though...

I mean the marriage caused a lot of stress didn't it.

Ladies are the best RX!!!

Sorry to hear about your pending divorce.

Keep your mouth shut.  You had networking lunches.  You were taking a client out to lunch or dinner to "schmooze" them (unfortunately, it didn't work, because you didn't get the account)  *wink*.

The more info you volunteer, the more they can entrap you.

Also:  Your emails and such; were they on a free account like Yahoo, or on a regular account like your phone company?  Wipe your computer's cookies, web history, etc.

Hell; back up anything of vital importance pertaining to your business on to a portable hard drive ($60-$130 at Best Buy/Circuit City), and reformat your computer.  That should wipe out any incriminating evidence.  If you don't wish to do that, go to a smaller PC repair center and just explain you're divorcing and don't want your wife to find all that porno stuff.  They love to do stuff like that.  

Just my 10 cents (adjusted for inflation, taxes, and insurance)

No matter what you tell the attorney, he's probably going to ask for receipts. You can always say you gave it to the local fire department, or to some other charity.

Ultimately, if there is an issue made of the shortfall, you will find yourself answering some questions under oath.  If you lie, you will be in far worse shape lying under oath (either on the stand, through a deposition, or answering Interrogatories), than you will be if your hobbying gets out.

Chances are, unless you are talking about A Lot of money, it won't be an issue.  If it is, then, once her lawyer locks in on it, you are taking a great leap of faith that your hobbying won't come out some other way if you make up a story and then stick to it.

Good luck.

It was money well spent is the best answer.

Try gasoline for starters. These days money just disappears.

You don't have to answer to those amounts. Focus on the present.

Focus on getting thru the divorce and make sure you have a good attorney. Pay him and keep your mouth shut. If she wants a divorce she can have one. Divorces are Civil not Criminalprocedures!!

Is it a crime to spend your hard-earned $$$?

Just relax and try to get thru it. It never pays to lie. In this case I think you just need to play dumb.

Best of Luck

Sexy Carolina

as in a business valuation, it shouldn't be a problem.  Cash on hand is the issue, not where your draws have gone. Very seldom will an attorney reconcile deposit records.

Say that with a Southern drawL

Fortunately, I let my wife run wild with her credit card and she spent nearly as much on shopping for crap, most of which she never ever took out of the boxes, as I spent on the hobby.

I documented the heck out of it.

In the end, the attorneys decided not to go there.

-- Modified on 7/21/2008 12:45:53 PM

-- Modified on 7/21/2008 1:53:10 PM

... they'll never know it was actually for providers.

So what if it was for prostitutes?  The marriage is likely irretrievably broken anyway.  Now, I'm not a lawyer, but unless the amounts were so gargantuan as to constitute waste of the marital estate, past expenditures have no bearing on equitable distribution or computations of alimony or child support.  In most states, fault is not required to secure a divorce and in most states support calculations are fault-neutral.

Of course, I'm not a lawyer--but I did watch "L. A. Law" once.

At this point.. WTF?  She is divorcing you or you her.  Smile and don't say a word.

...watching LA Law does make you a lawyer.  Or a Senator.  Or both, if you watch it twice.

I've been there on "business" over fifty times in the last two or three years. I know I've spent well over $250K and really haven't generated any business. I guess that makes me a really, really bad businessman, but a very happy one. lol

Just asking.  I know, wrong board, but they're so EEEEvil over there.

whos to say you spent it at all. If she does your banking you can always say you give her the $$ and have no clue why she has not deposited it.
Cost of everything has gone up so its less to deposit.
with an unhealthy marriage you have been hanging out more with friends ect for your sanity. Playing more golf, pool, boating more ball games ect..paid cash and don't have reciepts, you are just using all these playthings as a distraction from the troubles at home.
Give her no clear answers, you are just spending more.

If you charged any prostitue fees on a credit card or took cash advances for this or at strip clubs, it will be deducted from the portion of the credit card debt your wife owesd.  Plus if there is proof you hired a prostitute or hung out at strip clubs it goes against you for custody and you may be required to have court supervised visits with your kids.  The reason being the perception you are a sex fiend and may molest your children. My wife just filed for divorce due to my strip club and prostitue habits and I am going through this now. I am not able to have my kids with me with out supervision. I messed up bad. I lost my marriage amd kids