For people in the tech industry and various other high-profile careers in Nevada, divorce can bring with it its own set of challenges on both personal and practical levels. While disentangling the emotional bonds of a marriage can be extremely painful, especially when children or long-time partnerships are involved, this can be accentuated further by the financial complexity of a high-asset divorce. Asset division in a divorce that involves investments, real estate and other traditional properties as well as more speculative assets, like startup companies or inventions, can be the source of many disputes.

The tech industry has, in many cases, encouraged a startup culture that promotes entrepreneurship and innovation. Of course, great risk can bring great reward, but it can also lead to failure. It can be difficult to properly value startup companies that have not yet been sold or offered for public investment, which can make the division of that asset during a divorce particularly challenging. This complexity is compounded when one partner is significantly more involved in the business.

In some cases, the drive to win in the divorce can be limiting and deeply problematic for both partners. For example, one party may postpone the sale of a startup in an attempt to remove potential assets from the property division in the divorce or conceal the current valuation of a company. In other cases, a startup may be the main asset that needs to be divided in the divorce, leading to a sale that could be less timely in order to split the proceeds or the division of company shares and the creation of a forced business partnership.

In Nevada, marital assets are considered community property. This means that gains from an IPO or a sale are immediately divided in half upon divorce. A divorce lawyer can work with people going through a high-asset divorce to protect their interests and achieve a fair settlement.