If you have questions about divorce, legal separation, alimony pendente lite, or alimony in Connecticut, please feel free to call the experienced divorce attorneys at Maya Murphy, P.C. in Westport today at 203-221-3100 or email Joseph C. Maya, Esq. at JMaya@Mayalaw.com.

What to do if your spouse is spending the assets against your wishes?

This situation occurs frequently in divorce litigation and there are a few different mechanisms to stop this spending up front or to account for the spending later at the divorce hearing. If you or your spouse intentionally dissipated, wasted, depleted, or destroyed marital assets than the Court can consider that property as if it still existed and put those values into the equation in order to give you more of what is left. Judges consider all the contributions of both spouses to the marriage, the length of the marriage, the circumstances that gave rise to the end of the marriage, all the financial resources of each party (incl. individual debts, inheritance, pre-marital assets, etc.), age, physical and mental health of each spouse, earning capacity, education, and other relevant factors.

What are examples of Marital assets and liabilities

  • Those assets or liabilities acquired or incurred either by one spouse or both during the marriage regardless of how the property is titled.
  • All vested and non-vested benefits or funds either spouse acquired, contributed, or accrued during the marriage, such as 401(k) plans, IRA's, pensions, and/or insurance plans, etc.
  • Property held by the parties in tenancy by the entirety, such as the marital home titled in both spouses' names, regardless of whether the home was purchased before or during the marriage.
  • Property acquired prior to the marriage that has been comingled with marital property.
  • The enhancement in value of a premarital asset resulting from the efforts of either spouse during the marriage.
  • What are examples of Non-marital assets and liabilities
  • Those acquired or incurred by either spouse prior to the marriage and which remained separated during the marriage and were not "co-mingled."
  • Assets acquired separately by either party by gift to only one spouse such as an inheritance.
  • All income derived from non-marital assets during the marriage, unless the income is used or relied upon by you and your spouse during the marriage or co-mingled. A pre-marital fund that remained in your name without contribution during the marriage may be preserved as a non-marital asset.
  • Asset and liabilities excluded based on a valid written agreement between the parties, such as a prenuptial agreement.
  • Liabilities incurred by one spouse as a result of the other's forgery or unauthorized signature of that spouse's name.

How to divide assets equally?

Equally dividing assets can be complicated. First, you need to identify the marital assets and liabilities, as the court cannot distribute non-marital assets. To aid the Court, both sides must complete a Court form called a Joint Statement of Marital Property so that both sides can discuss equitable division of all the assets. Parties will not always agree as to whether certain assets are marital or not and the form allows for disagreement between spouses but ultimately, unless the parties settle, the Court will dish out the assets and liabilities. In order to ascertain the value of property, experts are typically retained. However, good lawyers look for ways to help the spouses agree on values so they can save the cost of experts. These include real estate appraisers, actuaries, business valuators and other individuals with specialized knowledge in determining the market value of various assets. These experts can be retained by one or both of the parties.

How can an attorney help you?

Some clients want to hire lawyers so they can pursue more than 50% of the marital assets. While this is possible under the law, the Court will need to consider a number of factors, to include marital fault, to determine if an unequal distribution is appropriate. A skilled and fair attorney can help you decide if an unequal distribution is reasonable in your case.

For a free consultation, please do not hesitate to call the experienced family law and divorce attorneys at Maya Murphy, P.C. in Westport, CT at 203-221-3100. We may also be reached for inquiries by email at JMaya@mayalaw.com.

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Source- https://www.avvo.com/legal-guides/ugc/division-of-assets-and-liabilities-in-divorce