Sometime called a forensic accountant or asset searcher or a certified licensed investigator (CLI), a forensic accountant analyzes marital estates for evidence
of dissipation of assets or hiding of assets.
Criteria for a Freezing Order To obtain a freezing order, a Claimant needs to establish three things: • A good, arguable case; • That there is a real risk
of dissipation of assets; and • That a freezing order would be just inall thecircumstances.
While the English court found that there was a real risk
of dissipation of assets, the court held, however, that it was not just and convenient to grant the relief sought.
The necessary requirements are conveniently set out at paragraph 33 in the judgment of Eder J in Elektromotive Group Ltd v Christopher Pan [2012] EWHC 2742 (QB) and in particular at subparagraph (i) in relation to the risk
of dissipation of assets.
In the recent case of Electromart (Ontario) Inc. v Fabianiak et al., the Ontario Superior Court considered the level of evidence required to prove that there is a real risk
of the dissipation of assets, one of the elements necessary to obtain a Mareva injunction freezing a defendant's assets.
For a successful result, the applicant must prove that there is a good arguable case, there must be a real risk
of dissipation of assets which is often difficult to prove, and it must be just and convenient to grant the freezing order.
While delay may be a relevant factor in some cases, particularly where urgency is alleged as a basis of moving without notice under Rule 37.07 (3), it is not a relevant factor where a risk
of dissipation of assets is the basis for moving without notice under Rule 37.07 (2).
Not exact matches
However, the Court held that this conduct was still relevant to the issue
of risk
of dissipation by effectively reasoning that if Mr Grigorishin could transfer away
assets for one reason, he could do it for other reasons, including to avoid paying the judgment.
A risk
of dissipation basically means that, if left unrestrained, a defendant is likely to either hide or transfer away his
assets so that the applicant can not enforce a judgment against those
assets.
To support this, the team has wide experience in search and seizure orders, freezing injunctions, proprietary injunctions and other options to gain competitive advantage in a litigious situation and prevent the
dissipation of a defendant's
assets.
In the trust and estate litigation arena, he represents corporate trustees, individual trustees, personal representatives, and beneficiaries in disputes involving breaches
of fiduciary duty,
dissipation of trust or estate
assets, and claims
of lack
of testamentary capacity, undue influence and fraud.
His trust and estate litigation practice includes representing corporate trustees, individual trustees, personal representatives and beneficiaries in disputes involving breaches
of fiduciary duty,
dissipation of trust or estate
assets, and claims
of lack
of testamentary capacity, undue influence and fraud.
The court next reversed the divorce court's award
of $ 50,000 for
dissipation of assets as without supporting evidence because waste and
dissipation of assets are the same thing and do not occur over the course
of the marriage, but instead only while the marriage is undergoing an irreconciliable breakdown.
While Mr Vaughan's argument succeeded at first instance, the Court
of Appeal had little truck with it, approving earlier guidance from Martin v Martin [1976] Fam 335, [1976] 3 All ER 625 and Norris v Norriss [2003] 1 FLR 1142, [2003] All ER (D) 428 (Feb): clear evidence
of wanton
dissipation of assets should result in factoring back
of the relevant monies into the matrimonial pot.
The court discharged the freezing order having found, on the facts, that it should not exercise its jurisdiction because Mobil could not demonstrate that: PDVSA's conduct in relation to the
assets was unjustified, ie a risk
of dissipation; the case was one
of urgency; there was a connection between the dispute or the parties and this jurisdiction (there was never any suggestion
of fraud); or that PDVSA had
assets in the jurisdiction.
During the course
of litigation, Laiken obtained a very broadly worded ex parte Mareva order freezing the
assets of Sabourin and other named defendants which included enjoining any others «with knowledge
of this Order» to «prevent the sale, disposition, withdrawal,
dissipation, sale, assignment, dealing with, transfer, conveyance, conversion, encumbrance or diminishment»
of the
assets, specifically including money held in «trust accounts».
Therefore, the family court must find the allegedly at fault party engaged in willful misconduct, bad faith, intentional
dissipation of marital
assets, or the like before it may alter the equitable distribution
of marital property based on economic misconduct.
Mechanisms such as prejudgment remedies
of attachment and garnishment, injunctive relief to freeze
assets,
asset discovery, and debtor examinations are all part
of our strategy to see that our client's claims are not rendered uncollectable through the
dissipation of assets.
If there has been an intentional
dissipation of marital
assets, the innocent spouse may be entitled to a larger share
of the remaining marital property; this is something to discuss with an experienced lawyer.
During divorce, forensic (or investigative) accounting professionals can trace the paper - trail
of funds through the various accounts
of the marriage, determine the actual income
of the family, verify claims
of «co-mingling» marital and separate
assets, or determine the validity
of a potential claim for
dissipation of marital assets (see «Dissipation Issues,» below, for more on t
dissipation of marital
assets (see «
Dissipation Issues,» below, for more on t
Dissipation Issues,» below, for more on this topic).
There are many legal definitions
of what constitutes
dissipation, but they all involve minimizing marital
assets by hiding, depleting, or diverting them.
Risk
of dissipation is easy to establish in such cases: if there is a prima facie case
of fraud, eg misappropriation
of the claimant's money, then the court will readily accept that the defendant is also likely to try to take steps to move his
assets out
of the reach
of the claimant before the latter can obtain and enforce a judgment.
He has been involved in a number
of multi-million pound directors» misfeasance claims and is extremely familiar with claims that arise from fraudulent trading and the dishonest
dissipation of assets, having experience
of tracing and realising
assets both within and outside
of the jurisdiction.
Recently, the courts
of several Caribbean islands — long considered to be havens where funds could be stashed beyond the reach
of creditors — have demonstrated they are prepared to take determinative action to prevent
dissipation of assets that might respond to a prospective judgment from a foreign court.
Interim measures are frequently required, including search and seizure orders and freezing injunctions, to prevent
dissipation of assets prior to the issue
of proceedings.
Subject: Civil procedure; Insurance;
Dissipation of assets; Freezing injunctions; Insurance brokers; Interim injunctions; Risk; Setting aside freezing injunctions
If one spouse causes a loss
of marital property during or after the breakdown
of the marriage, called a
dissipation of marital
assets, the court may give the other spouse a larger portion
of marital
assets since there are fewer marital
assets to distribute because
of the loss.
If you file for divorce after January 1, 2013, your spouse must notify the court that he intends to pursue a claim for
dissipation of marital
assets, and the court sets a limit as to how far back before your separation these claims can apply.
Your state's laws determine how your divorce court can repair the damage caused by your spouse's
dissipation of marital
assets.
Each party's
dissipation or destruction
of marital
assets within two years prior to filing for divorce.
The Journal
of the DuPage County Bar Association: What Constitutes
Dissipation of Marital
Assets?
: How and When
Dissipation, Depreciation and Depletion impacts an Equitable Division
of Marital
Assets.
either party's wasteful
dissipation of assets or any transfer or encumbrance
of assets made in contemplation
of divorce without fair consideration; and
Courts now view the marriage as an economic unit, and in general courts are more concerned about economic misconduct — such as the
dissipation of marital
assets — than they are about marital misconduct — such as infidelity.
American Academy
of Matrimonial Lawyers:
Dissipation of Marital
Assets and Preliminary Injunctions: A Preventive Approach to Safeguarding Marital
Assets
It enjoins both spouses from
dissipation of community
assets, harassment
of each other or the children, and removal
of children from Arizona without joint agreement or by court order.
Various factors are taken into consideration when distributing
assets including the incomes
of the parties prior to and at the beginning
of the divorce, duration
of the marriage, need to occupy the marital home, loss
of inheritance or pension rights, maintenance awards, future financial circumstances
of each spouse, tax consequences,
dissipation of assets, contributions as a non-wage earner to the income
of the spouse and home, and the character
of the property itself.
Damages Dating Violence Decision Declaratory Statute Decree Decree
of Adoption De Facto Defamation Default Judgment Defeasance Defendant De Jure Delinquency Demurrer De Novo Dependent Deposition Descendants Dictum Direct Examination Directed Verdict Discovery Disinheritance Dismissal Disposable Income Dissenting Opinion
Dissipation of Assets Dissolution Divorce Divorce A Mensa Et Thoro Divorce A Vinculo Matrimonii Docket Doli Incapax DOMA (Defense
of Marriage Act
of 1996) Domestic Partners Domestic Relations Court Domestic Relations Order Domicile Donatio Mortis Causa Dower DPPA (Deadbeat Parents Punishment Act) Due Process Duty
of Support
Cases involving domestic violence,
dissipation of marital
assets, and other emergency matters will require immediate court action and the intervention
of the judge.
An exception to this would be if a true emergency situation exists, usually involving some level
of danger to children or the immediate
dissipation of marital
assets.