How are Sales Commissions Treated in the Divorce Process?

When a person earns sales commissions during the divorce process, how will those commissions be treated? Are they or are they not marital property?

The general rule is that if the sales commission occurs before the marriage is officially over, it can still be classified as marital property, even if the divorce process is ongoing. However, some sales commissions do not get paid or become available until after the divorce is finalized. In such a case, the person who receives the commission is usually able to hold on to it, though they will still be responsible for informing the judge that they expect a sales commission to arrive at some point.

Cases involving alimony and child support

There are some cases in which the sales commission might be co-opted to pay for an alimony or child support payment. Sales commissions can be used to make these payments if necessary, though this usually only becomes an issue if the parent has fallen behind on child support payments. With alimony, commissions probably won’t be needed to make the payments unless the receiving party will be receiving a large settlement at the outset of the divorce and then alimony payments afterward.

A person who receives sales commissions can work with an employer to have commission money sent directly toward child support or alimony payments if needed.

To learn more about how different types of earnings are treated in the divorce process, speak with a knowledgeable Long Island family law attorney at Bryan L. Salamone & Associates.