Divorce brings with it many decisions that you probably thought you would never have to face. One such difficult decision is how to fairly divide the marital assets that you and your spouse have acquired over the course of your relationship. In cases where the couple was not married for a long period of time, this can be fairly easy. However, for marriages in which many assets were accumulated over a long period of time, the task of dividing everything up can be daunting. It is important to keep in mind that there are several ways to go about dividing assets. The process does not have to be as painful as it seems.

Diving Assets Outside of Court

If possible, you should consider dividing your assets with your spouse outside of court. If you and your spouse face a fairly amicable divorce, and you think that you can sort through your property on your own, this could save a lot of time, money, and stress. If you decide to take your case to court, a judge will make the final decision in regards to who is entitled to what. Keeping the negotiation out of court can give you more power over what you keep because the decisions will be made between you and your spouse, and you won’t have the legally binding input of a judge.

You can settle your divorce outside of court on your own or with the help of a third party, such as a mediator. Mediators are meant to help a couple reach a compromise concerning what they want and don’t want in the divorce. The mediator is an unbiased third party who listens to the desires of both spouses. After considering the interests of both parties, a mediator will propose an agreement on how to split up assets and debt. If the agreement is satisfactory to both parties, they can sign the agreement and it will go into effect.

Dividing Assets in Court

However, if it is not possible to divide the assets amongst yourselves, you can go to court and a judge will decide who keeps what using state law rules in order to divide the property. In court, your assets will be divided based on equitable distribution, meaning that the assets will be divided in a way that the judge deems fair. This does not necessarily mean that your assets will be divided equally.

If one spouse has a better financial standing than the other, this will be taken into account when considering the “fairest” distribution. Marital property is the only property that will be considered for equitable distribution. Marital property includes all assets and earnings accumulated over the course of the marriage. Separate property, on the other hand, includes all personal property obtained before the marriage took place as well as inheritance or gifts given to one spouse.

The above content in its entirety was taken from connecticut-divorce.com and was authored by Jennifer Sanfilippo in 2013.

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