The date of your separation is important because it affects the division of your retirement accounts. It is best to have the court set a date when you plan to separate, so you and your spouse both know which contributions and transactions are marital and which are not.
If you are ready to separate, contact a divorce attorney at MNB Law Group for a consultation.
Marital and Non-Marital Property
Once you start separation proceedings or file for divorce, you need to think about the division of assets and liabilities. You must divide marital property but not non-marital property. Determining what is non-marital property is complicated in most cases. A non-marital property might include:
- An inheritance from your parents or another relative on your side of the family.
- A property you owned before the marriage. However, if you used funds earned during the marriage for repairs, mortgage payments, and other upkeep, at least a portion of the equity is co-mingled and becomes marital property.
- The money you contributed to a retirement account before your marriage. Anything you contributed during the marriage is joint property. Everything you contribute after you separate is non-marital property.
You should always contact a family law attorney because the line is often blurry about what is and isn’t marital or joint property. An attorney will ensure your rights are not violated when it comes to property distribution.
Don’t forget, liabilities often follow the same division rules as assets. After separating, you cannot ask your spouse to pay half of the balance if you take out a new credit card. While it is ultimately up to the court, if your spouse receives a new credit card just weeks before the separation date and you can prove that you’ve never used it, the court could rule that as your spouse’s debt.
The Separation Date
Your date of separation affects the division of particular property. It is also crucial that anything you purchase before the date of separation is marital property, while anything after is your individual property.
Your divorce could get dicey if you and your spouse disagree on the date of separation. Thus, you must be both on the same page when it comes to your separation date.
Contact MNB Law Group
If you consider separating, contact a family law attorney at MNB Law Group to discuss your intentions. When you have a set separation date that your spouse cannot change at will to benefit themselves, you can move on with your life confident that most retirement account deposits and purchases after that date are not joint property.
