Divorce proceedings of high-tech people
The high-tech field is characterized by various aspects that affect the nature of married life and so on. About the divorce. The high-tech industry is characterized by high salaries, bonuses, accumulation of social rights, and of course the possibility of a startup that is ripe for an exit.
On the other hand, the high-tech field is characterized by unusual working hours, frequent trips abroad, etc.
How will the court rule on various issues in a divorce where one of the spouses works in high-tech?
High-tech price tag
The most difficult problem facing Israeli courts when it comes to high-tech divorces is the attempt to calculate the true value of startups.
One of the main rules in property division is – what was there before the marriage is yours, and what becomes after is yours. In cases where the marriage has been short, less than 5 years, the courts tend to rule that it is not Edit Property division, that is, not to divide the fruits of the startup with the other spouse.
However, if the marriage has been going on for a long time, the court will need a complex accounting assessment in order to rule on this issue.
Roughly speaking, the court will divide the total value of the startup by the number of years from inception to divorce, and multiply that by the actual number of years of marriage. This will effectively express the joint property existing in the property – and it will be divided equally between the spouses.
Options
In the high-tech sector, part of the high income is embodied in the granting of options by the company to employees. It is common to give employees options to purchase shares of the company they work for as a reward for their past work or as an incentive for their future work.
There is a difficulty in estimating the value of options, as it is not possible to know in advance what the value of the option will be when it is actually exercised. To this end, it is customary to Determine as part of the divorce agreement Because the employee undertakes to notify his spouse in advance of the exercise of the option and to pay him his share for it.
Additionally, in the high-tech field, it is customary to grant hidden options, especially in international companies, when they are given to an employee as part of a secret agreement between him and the employer. These are options that are ostensibly hidden from the eyes of those who are not the parties involved, including the employee’s spouse.
If the spouse nevertheless learns of their existence, the problem still remains of disclosing the amount of options, assessing their value, and attributing the portion that belongs to the marriage period, since the vesting date for hidden options is always in the future.
Advantages and disadvantages of high tech
In the high-tech field, there are quite a few disadvantages in married life. Many high-tech people suffer from endless workdays, which, although they have a salary on their side, also bring with them very little free time.
There are cases in which high-tech people have lost their jobs for various reasons, since the high-tech industry is characterized as an industry for young people only and there is real difficulty in finding work at advanced ages. Technological development is rapid and a sought-after worker may find himself much less sought-after or attractive, due to various changes and the development of various technologies.
There is also a situation where the startup will not mature into a real exit and all the money invested will go down the drain.
In such a case, the crisis is almost inevitable, as the standard of living declines and a marital relationship that was not good will probably lead to divorce and various claims against the spouse whose income has decreased, ranging from complaints about the significantly decreased standard of living to complaints about his behavior at home and his attitude towards the children.
According to prevailing case law, a spouse is a partner in both social security contributions (executive insurance, pension fund, provident fund, etc.) and is entitled to half of all property accumulated during the marriage.
Therefore, if one of the spouses comes to the conclusion that the marriage is irreparable and that the correct solution is divorce – it is advisable and right to plan this step in order to try and share as little as possible with the other spouse.
Personal reputation
High-tech people are a “hot commodity” not only in Israel, but throughout the world, and a large part of their value is measured In their name and the respected reputation they have earned.
Reputations earned by professionals are considered a proprietary right and are therefore treated as an economic asset in every sense.
Reputation is earned through investment of effort, hard work, time, money, etc., and these are defined as shared assets within the family, and hence the fruits of the effort and reputation achieved should also be seen as a shared asset for the family.
Child support in high-tech divorces
Currently, the court has a minimum threshold For child support Which is 1250 NIS per month before department expenses, study expenses and extraordinary medical expenses.
The court will generally determine the amount of alimony based on the divorcing husband’s salary and the value of his assets at the time of the divorce.
Foods for a high-tech woman
According to Jewish law, the husband is obligated to support his wife as long as they are not divorced and a divorce decree is not issued. These amounts are to be transferred by the husband to his wife. They are called alimony.
The husband is obligated to maintain the standard of living that his wife was accustomed to before the crisis broke out between them. When the wife does not work outside the home, or the couple’s main source of income comes from the husband’s job, he cannot be content with claiming that “she is content with the work of her own hands.”
Therefore, on this issue, there are conflicting aspirations and tactics between the spouses. The divorced wife will want to receive spousal support for as long a period as possible, and in as high amounts as she can obtain, while the divorcing husband will strive to reduce the amounts and the period.
In a situation where the standard of living is high, as befits many high-tech families, there is a clear interest in the woman to delay granting the divorce as long as possible.
The husband in this case does not have many options left, but to work to obtain evidence that will serve him to claim Before the Rabbinical Court Because this is a rebellious woman who deserves to be deported, and to expedite the process of granting a divorce in the rabbinical court as quickly as possible.
In many cases, a spouse who is not a high-tech employee and whose career is not expected to develop well files a claim for personal reputation or career assets or income gaps.
In conclusion, it is recommended that you contact a divorce lawyer who is knowledgeable in the field of high-tech, whether you yourself are a high-tech person or if your partner is one, in order to plan the divorce proceedings in advance and carefully, as well as to exhaust and preserve your rights in the best possible way and as much as possible under the circumstances of the case.
For a personal conversation with Attorney Sharon Segal, please call 077-997-4020 (24 hours a day)
