Where Is The Value In Assets After COVID-19?

The law has become an even more interesting landscape since the rise of COVID-19 and the myriad of issues that it has brought to the forefront. The disease has spread throughout the country and the world, and it has turned a lot of traditions and customs upside down. One thing that Garden City family lawyers see right now is a difficulty in valuing assets during this time.

The valuation of marital assets is a key component of ensuring equitable distribution of assets and an ultimately fair resolution of the case. In New York, Courts may choose to value assets any time from when the divorce action is commenced until the trial begins. Courts typically value active assets, such as businesses, which tend to increase in value, on the date the divorce action is commenced. Passive assets, the value of which fluctuates with the market, are typically valued on the date the trial begins. However, Courts have discretion when it comes to the date of valuation depending on various circumstances and factors relevant to each case.

COVID-19 has changed the legal landscape and introduced more obstacles when it comes to valuation as assets, incomes, and property values have fallen. Earnings, revenues, and sales have become extremely volatile as some workers and businesses have been deemed essential and others have not. Changing regulations regarding when and how businesses can open, who may go into work, and other various factors affect the values of different assets.

Fass & Greenberg has been working on better methods for valuing assets in the current climate that we find ourselves in. It is troubling that so many valuables are now difficult to assign a value to due to the declining economy and high rates of unemployment. At the same time, Fass & Greenberg knows that the unemployment rate is so high because we have asked people to stay home and closed restaurants and other public venues in many areas. Those jobs are gradually starting to come back as businesses are beginning to slowly reopen. As circumstances improve and the community opens up again, things will improve but the scars and losses of the pandemic will remain.

Assets such as cars, boats, motorcycles, jewelry, and the like have all become more difficult to assess as Garden City family lawyers try to figure out what kind of public demand there is for these items. If the public is not pushing to own such things, then the value just isn’t there. However, it is not clear that the public won’t want some of these valuables down the line as things normalize. Supply and demand prove more difficult to predict in these uncertain times.

While much of society has been put on pause during this pandemic, we know that personal family law issues have persisted. Going through a divorce or other situation in which valuables must be divided up among different parties is as critical as ever right now. Law firms are needed to help with the valuing of these items and to help make sure you end up on the right end of the deal when all is said and done. Do not put your financial future at risk. Take the time to hire competent experienced legal counsel to protect yourself and to help you achieve your desired outcome.