What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? AL
It looks like me and the wife might not make it, which I'm not happy about. Really sucks badly, but what I'm wanting to know is we have 50,000$ tied up with a freind in building houses. I can easily prove at least half is mine from money given to me. Will the court just split it 50-50? I would be pefectly fine with that, and hope they will if it comes to the divorce.
There's not enough detail to answer the question.
Basically, you're each entitled to 50% of marital equity as a starting point. However, AL is an equitable distribution state where the judge can vary from 50:50 based on a number of factors. Quick summary here:
Divorce Support - Alabama Property Division Factors
Basically, the first step is to determine what is marital and what is not. If you receive an inheritance and keep it separate, it is not marital. Money you had before the marriage is not marital unless you blend it with marital assets.
Even if you don't keep the money separate, it MAY be possible to show that some money you brought into the marriage should be treated as separate property, but this will take some detailed forensic accounting. However, in AL, even separate property becomes marital if you used it for the benefit of both spouses (and your investment in home building would probably qualify, so the money is likely to all be marital at this point).
Once it has been determined what is marital and what is not, the two of you have to decide how to split it. If you agree, there's no problem. If you can't agree, the court will have to make a decision for you and can split it differently than 50:50, particularly if there has been marital misconduct (or any other factor which makes the court think that a 50:50 split is unfair. This is where you might be able to argue that even though the money you brought into the marriage or received as a gift should entitle you to a larger share of the equity, even though it is thoroughly comingled).
There's enough money involved that it's clearly worth talking with a local attorney who would be familiar with local practices and would also be able to get ALL the relevant information from you.
