Divorce

In “equitable distribution” states like STATE [NOTE TO STUDENT: MAKE SURE THE STATE IS AN EQUITABLE DISTIBUTION STATE AND NOT COMMUNITY PROPERTY STATE - CAN GOOLGE TO FIND OUT], when people divorce, “marital” property is generally divided between the spouses in a way that a judge decides is fair (which does not necessarily mean 50%-50%). Typically, “marital” property means any property, money, and/or debts acquired during the marriage by either spouse, regardless of who paid for it or whose name it is in. This typically means that property acquired before the marriage is not considered marital property and is not subject to distribution (so it just goes to the person who owned it prior to the marriage). However, there may be some exceptions to this general rule. For example, in some cases, property that was bought before the marriage but was used or improved on during the marriage may become “marital property” so that the property itself or some portion of the property (such as the equity increase in a house) may be subject to equitable distribution.

As I mentioned above, as part of a divorce, marital property is usually split between the spouses, though not necessarily equally. What usually happens is that either the spouses will decide on a division of property that they can both agree to OR a judge will divide the property, looking at a number of different factors to decide what kind of property division would be fair. Unfortunately, WomensLaw.org does not have any specific information on STATE’s divorce law, so I do not know what these factors might be in your state. You may want to consider talking to a lawyer, who can hopefully give you more specific information and advice about what may or may not be considered marital property and the different things that may be considered in STATE in deciding how property is to be divided. If you would like to talk to a lawyer, you can search for one in your area, including those who may be able to offer free or low-cost services, here: LINK

I also wanted to share with you a link to the information we have on divorce in STATE on the WomensLaw.org website, although we do not have specific information on dividing property: LINK