For a few days, rock band Coldplay’s Foxborough, Mass., concert was the talk of the internet. What made the show go viral was a “Kiss Cam” moment that sent a couple diving for cover. The embrace and the pair’s subsequent mortified reaction spawned memes. It even got spoof treatment by the Philadelphia Phillies’ mascots. The viral snuggle also birthed many jokes about an impending divorce, as the man caught on camera was married… just not to his concert companion. Jokes aside, marital infidelity can play a serious role in a married couple’s divorce litigation. If you have questions about adultery and its possible impact on your divorce, be sure to seek out qualified answers from a skilled Maryland divorce lawyer.
Before Maryland overhauled its divorce laws in the fall of 2023, possible evidence of marital infidelity could have played a key role in how the divorce played out. A spouse could seek an absolute divorce on several fault-based grounds, one of which was adultery.
In October 2023, all that changed. Maryland is now a no-fault divorce state and has removed all of the fault-based grounds for divorce. Many experts in divorce and marital relationships see this change as beneficial, minimizing the impulse (or, sometimes, the need) to “air dirty laundry” to get a divorce. In this way, no-fault divorce has the potential to be more collaborative and less adversarial, which can benefit both spouses and, in particular, aid any children of the marriage.
It is essential to understand, however, that the 2023 overhaul of divorce law in Maryland has not necessarily removed adultery as an issue entirely in all divorce cases. In fact, adultery can play a central role in a particular type of divorce, which is one where a spouse has accused the other spouse of dissipating marital assets.
As a quick bit of background, to “dissipate,” in this context, means to “waste” assets, which a spouse can do by spending marital funds on something that does not benefit the marriage unit. This kind of expense can span a variety of things. For example, a few years ago, a Maryland court found that a husband dissipated marital assets after he emptied a retirement account and sold a car to pay for his father’s cancer treatments in Nigeria. The husband’s acts of dissipation eventually led the court to give the wife a $55,000 monetary award.
Of course, dissipation often involves a spouse spending marital assets to fund his/her extramarital affair with another partner. Frequently, the “cheating” spouse uses marital accounts and other assets to fund his/her adulterous courtship. This may include, as an example, putting lavish dinners, luxury vacations, weekend getaways, and pricey gifts on a marital credit card.
Another way that dissipation might occur (and might involve an extramarital partner) is even more nefarious. This scenario involves an adulterous spouse who transfers marital funds to his/her paramour (or perhaps their relatives) as a way of hiding assets and dodging his/her obligations under equitable distribution. In both this and the previous example, proving dissipation may require an in-depth dive into your marital accounts for any irregularities such as suspicious and unexplained withdrawals or funds transfers. This could dictate a need for an accounting expert to perform such a financial “deep dive.” At a minimum, you will want knowledgeable legal counsel to guide you through the process of providing dissipation and making the necessary related arguments to the court as they relate to equitable distribution and monetary awards.
When dissipation of assets presents itself as an issue in your divorce, you need the thoughtful advice from powerful counsel. Count on the Maryland family law attorneys at Anthony A. Fatemi, LLC. Our team has been assisting Marylanders in navigating the divorce process, including in cases where a spouse has wasted marital assets. Contact us today at 301-519-2801 or via our online form to set up your consultation.