When you first hear the words “marital fraud,” what immediately comes to mind is those arrangements where an American agrees to marry a foreigner so that they can get a green card. However, the kind of marital fraud that we are looking at today is not quite as exotic as immigration fraud. It has to do with one person knowingly deceiving another person into marrying them so that they can abscond with their financial assets.
Depending on the level of openness between married couples in some marriages, one of the spouses may be engaging in secret financial activities such as opening investment accounts that their spouse knows nothing about, purchasing properties and other financial transactions without informing their spouse.
University of Virginia law professor Kerry Abrams wrote an article about marriage fraud that was published in the California Law Review. She defines marriage fraud in this way: “In family law, marriage fraud is lying to the person you are marrying about your willingness to have children or sex with them, and the remedy is an annulment — it’s as if the marriage never existed. In other areas of law, it’s marrying to get a particular benefit — a tax break, immigration status, health insurance, social security benefits, military benefits, even a gym membership.”
When a spouse wakes up to the fact that their partner has been hiding assets, they notice that an account has been significantly drained, or they become aware that their partner is cheating and spending large amounts of cash on their new paramour, divorce is often their next move. In divorce proceedings, each spouse is under a court order to disclose all of their assets. Purposefully hiding those secret accounts can land them in contempt of court.
If you are planning to get a divorce, you may wish to speak with our Nashville divorce attorneys to discuss your case and receive skilled, legal guidance on your best course of action. Please contact the legal team at Miller Upshaw Family Law, PLLC to learn more about our divorce legal services. Our attorneys can help to make sure that your rights are protected and that you receive the best outcome possible so that you can move on and begin your new life.
Karla C. Miller has devoted her entire career to the practice of family law in Tennessee. She attended Auburn University and Nashville School of Law, and upon graduation in 1996, she opened her own law firm and has been assisting families throughout Tennessee since then. Learn more about Karla C. Miller here.
