Some people choose to spend a lot of time, effort, and money fighting over personal property. However, as experienced family law attorneys know, there is a better way to handle those issues. The following post explains a common sense approach to dividing personal property in a divorce (or separation) case: The division of personal property in… Continue Reading
Category Archives: Property Division
Subscribe to Property Division RSS FeedWhat is divorce mediation, and how is it different from arbitration?
Posted in Property DivisionDivorce mediation is a process in which divorcing spouses try to negotiate an acceptable divorce agreement with the help of a neutral third party: the mediator. The mediator helps the spouses to communicate and negotiate but doesn’t make any decisions for them. Both mediation and arbitration involve a neutral third party who is not a… Continue Reading
When is it important for an unmarried couple to make a written property agreement?
Posted in Property DivisionIf you haven’t been together long and don’t own much, it’s really not necessary to make a written agreement. But the longer you live together, the more important it is to prepare a written contract making it clear who owns what — especially if you begin to accumulate a lot of property. And, if you… Continue Reading
What You Can Do With A Prenup…
Posted in Property DivisionDefine who gets what if you divorce. Without a prenup, state law will specify how your property will be divided if you ever divorce. These laws may dictate a result that neither of you wants. You can use a prenup to establish your own rules for property division and avoid potential disagreements in the event… Continue Reading
What You Can Do With A Prenup…
Posted in Property DivisionKeep property in the family. If your property includes something you want to keep in your birth family, whether it be an heirloom or a share in a family business, you and your spouse can agree that it will remain in your family, and you can specify that item in your prenup. This can even… Continue Reading
What You Can Do With A Prenup: More
Posted in Property DivisionProvide for children from prior marriages. A prenup is helpful (perhaps essential) if either of you has children from another relationship and you want to make sure that your children inherit their share of your property. In a prenup, one or both spouses can give up the right to claim a share of the other’s… Continue Reading
What You Can Do With A Prenup: Continued
Posted in Property DivisionProtect each other from debts. Some of us bring debts, as well as assets, to a marriage. If there’s no prenup, creditors can sometimes turn to marital or community property to satisfy the debts of just one spouse. But if you want to make sure that saying “I do” does not mean saying “I owe,”… Continue Reading
What Is “Annuity?”
Posted in Property DivisionA purchased policy that pays a fixed amount of benefits every year — although most annuities actually pay monthly — for the life of the person who is entitled to those benefits. In a simple life annuity, when the person receiving the annuity dies, the benefits stop; there is no final lump sum payment and… Continue Reading
What Is “Tenancy In Common”?
Posted in Property Division“Tenancy in Common” is a way two or more people can own property together. Each can leave his or her interest upon death to beneficiaries of his choosing instead of to the other owners, as is required with joint tenancy. In some states, two people are presumed to own property as tenants in common unless… Continue Reading
What Is “Tenancy By The Entirety?”
Posted in Property DivisionA special kind of property ownership that’s only for married couples. Both spouses have the right to enjoy the entire property, and when one spouse dies, the surviving spouse gets title to the property (called a right of survivorship). It is similar to joint tenancy, but it is available in only about half the states…. Continue Reading
What is “Community Property?”
Posted in Property DivisionA method for defining the ownership of property acquired during marriage, in which all earnings during marriage and all property acquired with those earnings are considered community property and all debts incurred during marriage are community property debts. Community property laws exist in Arizona, California, Idaho, Nevada, New Mexico, Texas, Washington, and Wisconsin. Copyright ¬©… Continue Reading
What is “Separate Property”?
Posted in Property DivisionIn community property states, property owned and controlled entirely by one spouse in a marriage. At divorce, separate property is not divided under the state’s property division laws, but is kept by the spouse who owns it. Separate property includes all property that a spouse obtained before marriage, through inheritance or as a gift. It… Continue Reading
How Is Property and Debt Divided at Divorce?
Posted in Family Law Basics, Property DivisionIt is common for a divorcing couples to decide about dividing their property and debts themselves (with or without the help of a neutral third party like a mediator), rather than leave it for the judge to decide. If however, a couple cannot agree, they can submit their property dispute to the court, which will… Continue Reading