In Massachusetts, when a couple divorces, the court divides up “marital” property acquired during the marriage in a manner it deems most fair and equitable. Each spouse, however, gets to keep “separate” property — in other words, property the spouse owned before the marriage that they brought into the marriage, as well as individual gifts or inheritances they received during the marriage.

But what if you’re bringing a business into a marriage? A business is a more complicated asset, and if you’re not careful a business can become marital property. So if you want to make sure your business remains separate property, there are a few options you should consider.

A good option is to create a prenuptial agreement or, if you’re already married, a postnuptial agreement that lays out exactly who brought what into the marriage and what rights each spouse has in the event of a divorce. An agreement like this can help protect your business assets from being divided by a divorce court.

You should also keep impeccable business and financial records related to your company. In the event of a divorce, these records could help serve as important evidence that the business is completely yours, and your spouse hasn’t been involved or invested in the business in a way that would suggest to a court that it’s marital property.

A third way to protect your business is to avoid “commingling” or interspersing business and personal property. For example, if you purchase a vehicle to use as a “company car,” you need to be sure that you use it exclusively for that purpose.

Similarly, you may be tempted to have an eager spouse help out with the business. But it would be a very good idea to limit your spouse’s involvement. If your spouse’s contributions measurably helped the business grow, a court might be skeptical that the business should be considered your separate property.

Finally, make note of what others who run similar businesses receive as salaries, and pay yourself accordingly. If you don’t pay yourself a fair salary, putting most of the profits back into the business instead of supporting your family, your spouse has a stronger case that they’re entitled to a stake in the company if you split up.

If you have questions about protecting your business in a divorce, please contact Attorney Schutzbank to learn your options.