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He started the company during the marriage. His name is on the door, on the contracts, and on every government-contracting registration. His spouse never worked a day there. To him, that settles the question of who keeps it.
Virginia law does not see it that way. Under Va. Code § 20-107.3(A), property acquired by either spouse during the marriage is presumed to be marital property, with exceptions for gifts from third parties and inheritance. A business built during the marriage falls inside that presumption. The question is not whether the spouse worked there. It is how the business is classified, what it is worth, and how its value is distributed without destroying the thing that produces it.
This page explains how equitable distribution treats a closely held company in Fairfax County, why the fear that keeps founders awake is usually misdirected, and how Mr. Sris and the firm's Of Counsel attorneys approach valuation, classification, and structure. If a divorce is on the horizon and a business is at stake, call Law Offices Of SRIS, P.C. at (888) 437-7747 before anything is filed.
Equitable distribution in Virginia proceeds in steps. The court classifies each asset as marital, separate, or hybrid. It values each asset. It then divides the marital estate equitably, considering the factors listed in Va. Code § 20-107.3, which include each party's contributions to the family's well-being, contributions to the acquisition of property, the duration of the marriage, and the circumstances that led to the divorce. Equitable does not mean equal, and it does not mean the court cuts the company in half.
Classification is where a business case is often won or lost. A company founded before the marriage may be separate property, but growth during the marriage that resulted from the owner's personal effort can become marital. A company founded during the marriage is presumptively marital even if only one spouse ran it. Capital contributed from an inheritance, a pre-marital account, or a family gift can be traced and may be separate. Each of these questions turns on records, and the records must be found and organised before the court looks at them.
Valuation follows classification. Closely held companies do not have a market price. Their value is established by a financial professional who examines revenue, contracts, backlog, owner compensation, and the risk that the business depends on one person. Government-contracting firms in Fairfax County raise particular issues: contract vehicles, security requirements, and set-aside status may not survive a change of ownership, which affects what the company is worth to anyone other than its founder.
Divorce cases are heard in the Fairfax County Circuit Court. The court can award the business to one spouse and offset the other's share with other assets, order a payment over time, or in some circumstances order the company sold. Which of those happens depends on the record each side builds, and on whether the parties reach an agreement before the court decides for them.
The earlier this work starts, the wider the options: a buyout funded over time, an offset against other assets, a negotiated payment schedule. Once a complaint is filed, each of those options narrows.
Mr. Sris brings a background in accounting and information systems to divorce cases that turn on financial records. In a business case, that background shapes the first task: understanding what the company is, how it was funded, and where the separate and marital contributions can be traced. The firm works with valuation professionals who are accustomed to testifying in the Fairfax County Circuit Court.
The firm's objective is structure. A settlement that keeps the business operating and compensates the other spouse fairly is almost always better for both parties than a court-ordered sale. Counsel negotiates toward that structure where the other side is willing, and prepares to litigate classification and value where it is not.
Results depend on the facts, the records, and the court. Mr. Sris and the firm's Of Counsel attorneys work to make sure the business is valued accurately, classified correctly, and distributed in a way that leaves it standing.
Under Va. Code § 20-107.3(A), property acquired during the marriage by either spouse is presumed marital, except gifts from third parties and inheritance. A company founded during the marriage is inside that presumption whether or not the other spouse worked in it. Whether any part is separate depends on tracing the source of the capital and the timing of its growth.
Equitable distribution does not mean equal division, and courts rarely order a business divided. More often the court awards the company to the spouse who runs it and offsets the other spouse's share with other assets or a payment over time. A sale is possible but is usually a last resort. The outcome depends on the record.
By a financial professional who examines the company's revenue, contracts, assets, owner compensation, and the risks specific to the business, including dependence on the founder. Each side may retain its own valuation professional. In Fairfax County the court decides between competing valuations on the evidence presented.
The company may be separate property, but increases in its value during the marriage that resulted from your personal effort can be marital. The analysis is partly legal and partly accounting, and it depends on records showing what the company was worth at the marriage and how the growth occurred. Counsel can assess which parts are at risk.
No. Transfers, ownership changes, and compensation adjustments made in anticipation of divorce are discoverable and are treated as attempts to conceal or dissipate marital property. They damage credibility and can result in the court reassigning value to the spouse who made them. The protective steps are legal and financial, taken through counsel.
Divorce and equitable distribution cases are heard in the Fairfax County Circuit Court. Many business cases settle by agreement before trial, but the agreement is only as good as the valuation and classification work behind it. Counsel prepares the case as though the court will decide, which strengthens the negotiating position.
Mr. Sris, Owner and Founder of Law Offices Of SRIS, P.C., is a former prosecutor admitted in Virginia, Maryland, the District of Columbia, New Jersey, and New York. He founded the firm in 1997 and has practiced since then in the courts of Northern Virginia, where the firm maintains its principal location. His background in accounting and information systems from George Mason University is applied to matters that turn on financial records and electronic evidence. Mr. Sris testified before the Virginia House Courts of Justice Committee in support of 2019 HB 635 (chief patron Del. David Bulova). The firm's Of Counsel attorneys contract directly with the firm and appear alongside Mr. Sris in the practice areas described on this page. Every matter begins with a consultation in which the facts, the charge or claim, and the available options are reviewed before any strategy is set.
Law Offices Of SRIS, P.C., Fairfax location: 4008 Williamsburg Court, Fairfax, VA 22032. Local line (703) 636-5417. By appointment. Call (888) 437-7747 to schedule.
The company's future is decided by work done before the filing. Reach Law Offices Of SRIS, P.C. at (888) 437-7747 to schedule a consultation with Mr. Sris and the firm's Of Counsel attorneys about a Fairfax County divorce involving a business. The intake line is staffed 24/7.
Attorney advertising. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome.
Attorney advertising. This page is for general informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice, nor does it create an attorney-client relationship. Statutes and their application change and vary by case. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome; results may vary. For advice about your specific situation, consult a licensed attorney. Attorney responsible for this advertising: Mr. Sris.
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