It seems that people going through a divorce in the Southlake area are bombarded by misinformation from relatives, friends, and colleagues about the laws around property division in the state of Texas.
The best way to avoid this type of trap and unproductive communication is to find a divorce attorney you trust and talk to her or him about asset division based on your specific case. At the same time, be sure to talk about liability division through the divorce, as this can sometimes be a tool to use in mediations or negotiations through the divorce process.
Separate Property or Community Property?
The first thing to determine before planning for asset division is to determine if the property is separate or community. Separate property is property owned by one party to the marriage, while community property is owned jointly by the couple.
Issues such as who paid for the asset or the name on the title is not relevant, and this is a common mistake or assumption. However, if the other party contributed to paying for the asset or if there was a commingling of the assets, this becomes much more complicated and will require an experienced divorce attorney.
In general, any asset that was owned by one party to the marriage prior to the marriage is separate property. It includes homes and other types of physical assets, including art collections or other types of valuable items.
Gifts and inheritances to one person in the marriage are also considered separate property. Trusts that are set up to shelter separate property for Southlake residents are also considered separate property unless the property was community property and was owned or obtained by the couple during the marriage. It becomes even more complicated if the beneficiary of the trust is the spouse.
Investments, including 401k plans, are also challenging as part of the asset division in a divorce. These types of investments can be separate, community, or a blend of separate and community property. The more complicated and diverse the investments, the more challenging it can be to complete the division to comply with the law.
For couples in the Southlake area with substantial assets, we recommend seeing our asset division specialists at Orsinger, Nelson, Downing & Anderson, LLP.
