secret wealth vs.for richer,for poorer文章译.doc

secret wealth vs.for richer,for poorer文章译文Secret wealth vs. for richer, for poorer When Linda, a social worker in the New York area, received a significant chunk of money after her mother died, she did not divulge the amount to her husband of 15 years. Instead, she set up separate accounts earmarked for the education of their son and daughter. Worried that her marriage would founder once her children left home, Madame M., the wife of an Asian industrialist, bought an expensive apartment in central Paris to prepare as a possible escape hatch. The money she used had been inherited from her father. The marriage survived. But a decade later, her husband and children still dont know about the Paris property. Such behavior is perfectly legal. But the people who engage in it are reluctant to use their full names for fear of destabilizing their families. The classic marriage vows may urge for richer, for poorer, but concealing financial activities from a spouse is hardly a new strategy. Over a century ago in his play A Dolls House, Henrik Ibsen used the device of a wifes secret loan to unveil the dynamics of an unhealthy marriage. But in an age when divorce and serial marriage have become commonplace, when many women are entering marriages earning large sums and such assets are an increasing component of family wealth, it is not just billionaires like Ronald Perelman, president of Revlon, and Donald Trump who are concerned about protecting what is his, what is hers and what is theirs. While prenuptial agreements and even postnuptial agreements are increasingly being used to set boundaries, in the end, who gets what depends on legal jurisdiction, sound financial planning, national traditions and the psychological state of the marriage. Common sense may dictate that since most countries require income tax returns signed by both spouses, husbands and wives should at least know what the other is earning. But this is not necessarily so, experts in marriage counseling and family law say. At Relate, the largest couples counseling charity in Britain, each couple is given an exit evaluation after a course of therapy. One question they are asked is, Do you know how much your partner earns? Many people say no, said Denise Knowles, a counselor at Relate, whose clients come from all levels of society. Dennis Grande, an attorney and family law specialist at Mackall, Crouse & Moore in Minneapolis, described it this way: They are both supposed to sign the income tax returns, but frequently it is a multipage document, and she signs in a matter of seconds without reading it. It is unusual if a wife reviews it or even asks for a copy. I think if the wife has enough to spend and is comfortable, she is not concerned about the technical issues or knowing the exact amount. Grande said he even knew of a lot of situations where the husband had signed the wifes name: He takes care of the money. She takes care of the creature comforts - the homes, the vacation, the social calendar. It is a partnership that works amazingly well for a large percentage of the population. Except when it doesnt. It doesnt when the spouses have different attitudes about what money symbolizes and how it should be spent, when couples have a significant change in their financial status or when one partner becomes unhappy. Turbulence can also arise when couples consider how much to leave to their children. That is especially true if there are offspring from multiple marriages and the woman is bringing a lot of assets into the union. For people of significant means, one of the threshold issues is, how much do they leave to the children, said Blanche Lark Christerson, a managing director at Deutsche Bank Private Wealth Management in New York. One partner may have a sink-or-swim attitude. The other may want to set up trusts for the kids to offer a degree of protection even if they are successful doctors or lawyers, in case their practice may be sued somewhere down the line. Conflict over how money is used, or misused, is often a presenting issue when couples go for counseling, according to Knowles. And typically the financial problems reflect more deep-rooted psychological conflicts. For instance, if a husband keeps his salary a secret, He is able to say, We cant afford this; we cannot afford that, Knowles said. It becomes a matter of control. Meanwhile, keeping secrets can arouse anxieties in the other partner about where the money is going: How come you wont let me know? Where are the statements going? Are there gambling problems? Are there children I dont know about? These can signal commitment troubles, Knowles said. Other conflicts may stem from differing social backgrounds. If the wife grew up where there has been a lot of money, she may enjoy spending freely. But if the husband was brought up with nothing, he may feel driven to save for a rainy day even once he has amassed substantial wealth. For women, the biggest issue is whether there will be sufficient money for the children in the event of death or divorce. All women want to protect their children above all else, said Heather Maizels, executive director of Barclays Private Bank in London, which runs a separate advisory for high-net-worth women called Wealth for Women. Typically, she added, Women say, All the children should be treated equally. Fathers, by contrast, often want to take account of the childrens financial situation as influenced by the childs career choice or marriage situation. The father is more influenced by need, particularly when there are grandchildren. With the number of successful women entrepreneurs and high-level professionals rising, Maizels said women were increasingly concerned about the assets they brought into the marriage. Women with high earnings capacity, she said, are often influenced by their mothers situation. Either she never had her own money and she couldnt do things, Maizels said, or she had wealth, but lost it supporting a previous partner, or worse, a partners previous relationship. This is a particularly sensitive issue in England and Wales, where prenuptial agreements often are not recognized in court, although they may be considered evidence of intention, and the courts have leaned toward some generous distributions of marital assets since a landmark ruling in 2000. (See related article, Page 18.) Moreover, in contrast to most U.S. states or France, where the Napoleonic Code governs marital property, England and Wales stipulate that all assets that are brought into the marriage or inherited can be considered part of the marital estate and can be claimed by an unhappy partner, or even spouses and children from previous unions. Many people do not understand this and have a very expensive prenuptial agreement drawn up in the United States, Maizels said. They move to England, and later the English court will not recognize it. One solution may be a trust that protects inherited assets or assets earned before a marriage. But Ann Northover, an attorney at Fosters, a law firm in London, warned that such trusts must be set up well in advance of a marriage, or it could be challenged by the court. By contrast, the law in France and most of Continental Europe provides that whatever assets each partner brings into the marriage, including investments and inheritances, remain theirs, as do gifts and inheritances to an individual partner during the marriage. It is simple, said Bertrand Lapeyre at tude Flusin, a notary firm in Paris. Because of this law, you dont have to draft a prenuptial agreement. You already have an equivalent in what is called the rgime lgal. Only income and assets accumulated during the marriage are considered part of the community property, of which each partner is considered to own half. Even in France, some people choose to fence off additional marital assets. For instance, in the case of a newlywed just out of school who is starting a specialty medical practice, an agreement may be drawn to ensure that the practice will remain the doctors property in the event of divorce or death. Such before-the-fact agreements, Lapeyre said, cost about E500, or $600, and can be drawn up easily by a notaire, a French court officer. However, changing the marital status of an asset after a marriage, in what might be called a postnuptial agreement in the United States, is an expensive and complex process. It entails appointing a lawyer who can bring it before the court for an examination, Lapeyre said. The process can take a year. Napoleonic law also provides for a second legal form of marriage called a sparation de biens, which stipulates no community property and therefore releases each spouse from responsibility for his partners debts. Usually it is advisable to choose this regime if the husband has risky business activities, Lapeyre said. In the United States, a prenuptial agreement would be necessary to guard one spouse from the others debts. In the United States, each state has its own rules regarding prenups and what assets become part of the marital estate. In many states, assets held before marriage, as well as inheritances and gifts, can remain individual property. But the situation requires careful handling. First, the property or investment must be kept under separate ownership. Second, if there are any changes or additions made on a portfolio or property during the marriage, the investment may become common property. For instance, Grande said, if a spouse came into the marriage with 1,000 shares of Google bought at the offering price of $85, sold them recently for $400 and bought shares of General Electric or Halliburton, the account would no longer be completely partitioned from the marriage property, especially if both spouses conferred on the strategy. Such mistakes can provide a field day for divorce lawyers, who can easily charge vast sums to hire experts to evaluate assets, find stray assets and undermine the validity of a prenuptial agreement by saying that the weaker partner did not get adequate legal advice, there was fraud in the statement of net worth or the contract was signed under duress. Some people sign these documents, and it is in a language they dont even speak, Northover said. In Europe, the weaker party may have room to maneuver. A new European Union rule permits the first person to file a divorce petition to choose the jurisdiction, which can be a nasty surprise for a person who has lived for even a year in England. A lot of people are shopping around for the best deal and are catching their spouse unawares, Northover said. Of course, this kind of jurisdiction-hopping is more available to the rich. And, ironically, it can be the realization of great wealth that precipitates a divorce. Before you were wealthy, life had limitations, Knowles said. Suddenly you have few limitations. Before, snowboarding in the Alps was a wish. Now you can afford it. But the wife may decide she doesnt want to do it. So while a financial crisis may force a couple to pull together, realizing a fortune may cause a couple to squabble about things that were not debatable before. The differences can lead to separate lives, and sometimes to divorce.译文一：秘密财富vs。“不管是贫穷还是富裕,”当琳达,社会工作者在纽约地区,收到了一笔相当可观的钱她母亲死后,她没有透露达15年的丈夫。相反,她设立独立账户用于教育他们的儿子和女儿。担心她的婚姻会创始人一旦她的孩子离开家,夫人。一个亚洲的妻子实业家,在巴黎市中心买了一个昂贵的公寓准备作为一个可能的逃生出口。她用的钱已经从她的父亲那里继承来的。婚姻活了下来。但是十年后,她的丈夫和孩子仍然不知道巴黎的财产。这样的行为是完全合法的。但参与它的人都不愿意使用他们的全名,以免破坏他们的家庭。经典的结婚誓言可能敦促富裕,贫穷,“但从配偶隐瞒金融活动不是一个新的策略。一个多世纪前在他玩“玩偶之家”,亨利克易卜生用妻子的秘密的设备贷款推出的动力不健康的婚姻。但是在这样一个时代当离婚和串行婚姻已属司空见惯,当许多女性正在进入婚姻获得大笔等资产越来越组件的家族财富,不仅仅是亿万富翁像罗纳德佩雷尔曼,露华浓总统和唐纳德特朗普关心保护他,是她的什么,是他们的。虽然婚前协议,甚至结婚后的协议也越来越多的被用于设置边界,最后谁得到什么取决于法律管辖,健全财务规划,国家传统和婚姻的心理状态。常识就规定,由于大多数国家需要夫妻双方签署的所得税申报表,丈夫和妻子至少应该知道什么是其他收入。但这并不一定如此,婚姻咨询专家和家庭法说。在有关,英国最大的慈善夫妻咨询,每一对情侣都退出后评估治疗的进程。他们问的一个问题是,“你知道你的另一半挣多少钱?丹尼斯诺尔斯说,“很多人说不联系辅导员,其客户来自社会的各个层面。丹尼斯格兰德的律师和几座家庭法律专家,克劳斯&摩尔在明尼阿波利斯,称:“他们都应该签署所得税申报表,但经常是一个多页的文档,和她在几秒钟内没有阅读它。它是不寻常的如果一个妻子评论甚至要求一个副本。我认为如果妻子有足够的消费和舒适,她是不会关心技术问题或者知道准确的数目。”格兰德说,他甚至知道很多情况下丈夫签署了妻子的名字:“他照顾的资金。她照顾的物质享受,住宅、度假、社会日历。这是一个令人惊讶的是对一个大型的伙伴关系的人口比例。”除非它不。它不会当配偶有不同态度金钱象征着什么,应该如何度过,当夫妇有一个明显的变化在他们的财务状况或一方变得不开心。湍流时也可以出现夫妇考虑多少离开他们的孩子。,尤其是如果有后代从多个婚姻,女人带来了大量的资产进入联盟。”对人们的重要手段,阈值的问题之一是,他们多少钱留给孩子,”布兰奇Lark Christerson说,德意志银行董事总经理在纽约私人财富管理。“一方可能有成败全靠自己的态度。其他可能想要为孩子们建立信托提供一定程度的保护,即使它们成功的医生或律师,以防他们的做法可能被起诉的地方。”冲突如何使用钱,或者滥用,通常是“提出问题”夫妇去咨询时,诺尔斯说。和一般金融问题反映更根深蒂固的心理冲突。例如,如果一个丈夫保持他的工资保密,“他能够说,我们不能,我们不能,”诺尔斯说。“它变成了一个控制的问题。“与此同时,保守秘密可以引起焦虑对另一方的钱到哪里去了:“你怎么不让我知道吗?这些语句要去哪里?有赌博问题?有孩子我不知道吗?“这些信号可以承诺问题,诺尔斯说。其他冲突可能源于不同的社会背景。如果妻子长大,有很多的钱,她可以享受自由支出。但是,如果丈夫是一无所有,他可能感觉不得不未雨绸缪即使他积累了大量的财富。对于女性来说,最大的问题是是否有足够的钱为孩子们在发生死亡或离婚。“所有的女人都想保护他们的孩子胜过一切,”希瑟Maizels说,伦敦巴克莱银行私人银行的执行董事,运行一个单独的咨询为高净值财富呼吁妇女。通常,她补充说,“女人说,“所有的孩子都应该平等对待。”相比之下,父亲经常要考虑孩子们的经济状况影响的孩子的职业选择或婚姻状况。父亲更需要的影响,特别是当有孙子了。”成功的女企业家和高级专业人员的数量上升,Maizels说女性越来越关心他们带进婚姻的资产。高收入的女性能力,她说,“常常受到母亲的情况。”“要么她从来没有自己的钱,她不能做的事情,”Maizels说,“或者她的财富,但失去它支持以前的伙伴,或者更糟的是,之前的合作伙伴关系。”这是一个特别敏感的问题在英格兰和威尔士,在婚前协议通常是不承认在法庭上,尽管他们可能被认为是证据的意图,法院也靠朝一些慷慨的婚姻财产分布具有里程碑意义的执政以来在2000年。(见相关文章中,18页。)此外,与大多数美国或法国,拿破仑法典支配夫妻财产,英格兰和威尔士的规定,所有的资产都带进婚姻或继承可以考虑婚姻财产的一部分,可以声称不愉快的伙伴,甚至配偶和子女从之前的工会。“很多人不理解这一点,有一个非常昂贵的起草婚前协议在美国,“Maizels说。“他们搬到英格兰,后来英国法院将不承认。”一个解决方案可能是一个相信保护继承的资产或资产获得婚姻。但安Northover,培养一名律师,在伦敦一家律师事务所,警告说,这样的信任”必须建立在婚姻之前,或者它可能是受到法院的挑战。”相比之下,法国和欧洲大陆的大部分的法律规定,无论资产每个合作伙伴带来进入婚姻,包括投资和遗产,保持他们的,礼物和遗产单个合作伙伴在婚姻。说:“这很简单,”贝特朗在练习曲Lapeyre Flusin,公证公司在巴黎。“因为,你不需要一份婚前协议草案。你已经有一个等价的所谓政权的法律。只有在婚姻期间收入和资产的积累被认为是共同财产的一部分,其中每个伙伴被认为的一半。”即使在法国,一些人选择栅栏隔开额外的婚后财产。例如,在新婚的情况下就离开学校开始专业医疗实践,一项协议可能会吸引到确保实践仍将医生的财产在离婚或死亡的事件。Lapeyre说,这种事前协议花费E500,或600美元,并可以制定notaire容易,法国法院官。然而,改变资产的婚姻状况的婚姻后,可能被称为一个婚后协议在美国,是一个昂贵和复杂的过程。“这需要任命一名律师谁能把它在法院考试之前,“Lapeyre说。“过程需要一年。”拿破仑法律还提供了第二个婚姻法律形式称为分离好,规定没有共同财产,因此释放每个配偶从他的合伙人的债务负责。“通常是明智的选择这个政权如果丈夫高风险业务活动,“Lapeyre说。在美国,需要婚前协议来保护一方从其他的债务。在美国,每个州都有自己的规则关于婚前协议和资产成为婚姻财产的一部分。在很多州,婚前资产,以及遗产和礼物,能保持个人财产。但形势需要谨慎处理。首先,财产或投资必须保持独立的所有制。第二,如果有任何更改或添加了一个投资组合或财产在婚姻期间,投资可能成为公共财产。例如,格兰德说,如果配偶走进婚姻有1000股谷歌了提供85美元的价格,出售他们最近以400美元的价格买下了通用电气的股票或哈里伯顿,账户将不再是完全从婚姻财产分割,特别是如果夫妻双方赋予战略。这种错误可以提供给了离婚律师,谁能轻松收取大量雇佣专家来评估资产,发现流浪资产和破坏婚前协议的有效性较弱的伙伴说,没有得到足够的法律建议,在声明中有欺诈的净值或被迫签署了合同。“有些人签署这些文件,他们甚至不说话,语言“Northover说。在欧洲,较弱的一方可能有回旋余地。新的欧盟规则允许第一个提出离婚申请选择管辖,这可以是一个令人讨厌的惊喜一个人甚至一年住在英格兰。“很多人购物的最