Anyone in Georgia who has ever gotten a divorce knows that untangling a marriage can be a very complicated thing. When the couple also owns and runs a business together, there is a whole new layer of complexity with which to deal.
Entrepreneur suggests that one of the most important things to do at the outset is for each spouse to properly categorize various issues or topics. For example, some issues may be directly financial but there can also be an emotional aspect to them. It is important to identify what is emotional versus financial as well as what legal ramifications may exist.
According to Forbes, business-owning couples who are facing a divorce will essentially have to choose one of three options. One of these options is to retain co-ownership of the business even after a divorce. Not everyone can make this work but if this is the desired path, clarifying each person’s roles will be essential for the spouses as well as for any employees or others who work with the business.
If spouses cannot effectively continue to work together, the business could be sold much like a marital home is often sold during a divorce. This will necessitate a clarification of who owns how much of the business so that assets and debts are properly assigned. A final option is for one spouse to retain the business and the other spouse to buy that person out. Again, this is not unlike how a home is sometimes addressed in a business. This may require an actual payout but could also be managed within the larger context of the property division settlement.
