Before you enter a marriage, you and your spouse have separate property. The property you acquired while single remains in your ownership even after a divorce. Marital property includes all the assets you purchased during your marriage. It does not necessarily mean you bought the property together. The spouse whose name appears on the title or deed is irrelevant.
However, the court considers assets you or your spouse received as a gift or through inheritance as separate property. Therefore, they are not subject to the property division process. Remember, you should not have commingled these assets with your marital property to keep them separate.
If you and your spouse cannot agree on who gets to keep what from your marital property, the court can decide for you. The South Carolina family court will divide marital property equitably and not equally.
The significance of equitable property division
An equitable division means the court will distribute the property fairly and justly. The court will base its ruling on several apportionment factors when determining what is fair to each party involved. The equitable principle is so significant because the court considers the following:
- Which of the spouses played a vital role in maintaining and adding value to the property
- Which of the spouses used the property the most
- Which of the spouses deserves it more
- Which of the spouses needs the property the most after the divorce
- Who has custody of the children, and how ownership of the property affects the children
The goal of an equitable division is to ensure that the financial circumstance of each spouse does not adversely and drastically change after the divorce. A marriage can be long, and either spouse could have taken a domestic role to support the other. They deserve their fair share for the sacrifices they made for the marriage.
The property division process is not easy
To ensure an equitable division of property, the court will also look at the value and income potential of the property. You would have to be able to identify, collect, and document all your marital property and present it in court. Furthermore, the value of a property or asset can change over time. It is a challenging process, and you will need all the help you can get.