Dowry

[Taxing Matters]

But I am unaware of any situations where a US court has enforced one. I'm not saying there are none, but divorce decrees go past my desk as well and I can say with certainty that none of our foreign-born employees (of which there are thousands) ever provided us with a decree in which a dowry was enforced.

That may be because the dowry had already been provided or was otherwise not at issue in the divorce. But U.S. courts do enforce them when all the elements of a contract are present and assuming no public policy concerns about the effect it may have on encouraging divorce, which is the one additional factor that the CA courts look at when deciding whether to enforce it. In your state, most of the appellate cases on dowry are quite old, prior to about 1930. There are a few cases since, but not a lot, indicating that the issue of dowry just doesn't come up much in modern divorce proceedings. So my bet is that you've not seen it because the few employees your employer had which which had entered into dowry contracts simply didn't raise that as an issue in the divorce. But they can be enforced in your state, too. The Appeals Court said in a case from just last year:

While no Massachusetts courts have reported cases addressing the issue of a mahr, or Islamic marriage contract, other States have done so. See Marriage of Obaidi & Qayoum, 154 Wash. App. 609, 226 P.3d 787 (2010), and cases cited. Since a mahr agreement may be enforced according to neutral principles of law, it may survive any constitutional challenge and may be enforceable as a contractual obligation. See id. at 616, 226 P.3d 787. See also Akileh v. Elchahal, 666 So.2d 246, 248-249 (Fla. Dist. Ct. App. 1996) (interpreting a sadaq, “a postponed *128 dowry which protects the woman in the event of divorce”).​

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Ravasizadeh v. Niakosari, 94 Mass. App. Ct. 123, 127–28, 112 N.E.3d 807, 812 (2018). The court goes on to say it was persuaded by the views of the other states the mahr contract is to be viewed and enforced as a contractual obligation.

I understand that for many Americans today the concept of dowry is foreign, outdated, and perhaps strange. So I'm not surprised that the instinctive reaction of some would be that surely they are not enforceable in the U.S. In the case of Islamic dowry arrangements, some religious bias might be at work in there too. But our Constitution does not allow the government to discriminate based on religious beliefs and customs. So while many Americans may think dowry contracts inappropriate today, that does not mean that those who do believe in them cannot still practice that belief.

 

[Taxing Matters]

So, my issues are:
1- I bought a home in CA, 3 years before my marriage. Now, my ex-wife has started the community property discussion about that home. I have to add during the first year of our marriage, she was unemployed and I was paying everything. During the next years, I have kept continuing paying the home mortgage entirely from my bank account (not a joint account).
I also helped her financially to establish her own business from the savings that I collected after the marriage during that one year that she was unemployed!

This is not a dowry issue, but one of community property. Under community property, the property that you have prior to marriage starts as separate property. But it can become community property if you put community funds into it. The income you make during the marriage is community income — she has a right to half of that. When you put that community income into the property (e.g. pay the mortgage with it) then you are putting community funds into that property. The result is that you convert what was once separate property into community property. Simplifying it a bit, the result would be that she would be entitled to a portion of the appreciation in the home starting from when the community funds were used to pay the mortgage. So she may not get half the house, but she'll be entitled to some part of it if you used community funds to pay the mortgage.

2- She also has asked for her dowry by showing the court the translation of our pre-agreement. So, it seems I have to pay her dowry on top of the other things (splitting in half) is that right?

I have no way of knowing without reading the agreement and knowing the details of your financial situation. It is certainly possible that could be the outcome, but you'll need to ask your divorce attorney how it will play out in your situation.

Obviously I have contributed more than her! Split on half is not fair to me! So I am wondering how the CA court would decide for splitting our properties?

What you need to understand is that under community property it doesn't much matter who contributed more financially during the course of the marriage. Indeed, the whole idea is that a spouse (often the woman) may contribute a lot to the marriage that doesn't show up on a financial statement and that the marriage is a partnership where both share equally in the benefit and burdens the of the marriage. So get the idea out of your head that the idea that you made more money and contribute more money during the marriage is what matters. For the most part, it doesn't. The starting point in the divorce is you both share equally in dividing the assets that were accumulated during the marriage. There are some things that will be exceptions to that, but you'll have to accept that the post marriage assets, including the appreciation in the home since the marriage, are likely to be split more or less equally.

 

[Mike Alemie]

This is not a dowry issue, but one of community property. Under community property, the property that you have prior to marriage starts as separate property. But it can become community property if you put community funds into it. The income you make during the marriage is community income — she has a right to half of that. When you put that community income into the property (e.g. pay the mortgage with it) then you are putting community funds into that property. The result is that you convert what was once separate property into community property. Simplifying it a bit, the result would be that she would be entitled to a portion of the appreciation in the home starting from when the community funds were used to pay the mortgage. So she may not get half the house, but she'll be entitled to some part of it if you used community funds to pay the mortgage.



I have no way of knowing without reading the agreement and knowing the details of your financial situation. It is certainly possible that could be the outcome, but you'll need to ask your divorce attorney how it will play out in your situation.



What you need to understand is that under community property it doesn't much matter who contributed more financially during the course of the marriage. Indeed, the whole idea is that a spouse (often the woman) may contribute a lot to the marriage that doesn't show up on a financial statement and that the marriage is a partnership where both share equally in the benefit and burdens the of the marriage. So get the idea out of your head that the idea that you made more money and contribute more money during the marriage is what matters. For the most part, it doesn't. The starting point in the divorce is you both share equally in dividing the assets that were accumulated during the marriage. There are some things that will be exceptions to that, but you'll have to accept that the post marriage assets, including the appreciation in the home since the marriage, are likely to be split more or less equally.

I really appreciate the responses... Thank you!

 

[LdiJ]

So, my issues are:
1- I bought a home in CA, 3 years before my marriage. Now, my ex-wife has started the community property discussion about that home. I have to add during the first year of our marriage, she was unemployed and I was paying everything. During the next years, I have kept continuing paying the home mortgage entirely from my bank account (not a joint account).
I also helped her financially to establish her own business from the savings that I collected after the marriage during that one year that she was unemployed!

2- She also has asked for her dowry by showing the court the translation of our pre-agreement. So, it seems I have to pay her dowry on top of the other things (splitting in half) is that right?

Obviously I have contributed more than her! Split on half is not fair to me! So I am wondering how the CA court would decide for splitting our properties?

The equity in the home that accrued during the married would be community property. The premarital equity would not. Any equity in any other assets, that accrued during the marriage would be community property as well. Any debts that accrued during the marriage would be community debts.

Your earnings during the marriage were always community property therefore the fact that you paid the mortgage from your own bank account is not relevant. You used community property to pay the mortgage.

As far as the dowry is concerned, it would likely be helpful to know what the agreement actually said and how much money is involved...how much she actually brought into the marriage with the dowry.

 

[Mike Alemie]

The equity in the home that accrued during the married would be community property. The premarital equity would not. Any equity in any other assets, that accrued during the marriage would be community property as well. Any debts that accrued during the marriage would be community debts.

Your earnings during the marriage were always community property therefore the fact that you paid the mortgage from your own bank account is not relevant. You used community property to pay the mortgage.

As far as the dowry is concerned, it would likely be helpful to know what the agreement actually said and how much money is involved...how much she actually brought into the marriage with the dowry.

Initially, I have to thank you for helping me. In Persians culture its a way around. Housband (Groom) pays the dowry to the Wife. So all are paid by me but don't know if there is a way to decrease it from the community property or not!

 

[LdiJ]

Initially, I have to thank you for helping me. In Persians culture its a way around. Housband (Groom) pays the dowry to the Wife. So all are paid by me but don't know if there is a way to decrease it from the community property or not!

Did you pay the dowry directly to your wife or to her family? What does your agreement state about the dowry in case of a divorce? A US court might uphold the Dowry Agreement as a contract, but its unlikely that you could use it to reduce community property. It would be two separate issues.

 

[stealth2]

Did you pay the dowry directly to your wife or to her family? What does your agreement state about the dowry in case of a divorce? A US court might uphold the Dowry Agreement as a contract, but its unlikely that you could use it to reduce community property. It would be two separate issues.

As a corollary, did her family provide you with gifts of clothing, furniture, etc., as is customary? If so, how is that to be divided, in your opinion?

 

[not2cleverRed]

Initially, I have to thank you for helping me. In Persians culture its a way around. Housband (Groom) pays the dowry to the Wife. So all are paid by me but don't know if there is a way to decrease it from the community property or not!

Look, this is no different than entering into a prenuptial agreement, and you should consider it in that light.

You entered into the agreement (dowry as part of marriage). The time to challenge it was before you married.

Furthermore, any income either of you earned during the marriage is marital income. "Marriage" means you're in it together. So, even if you purchased the house before marriage, there has been marital income used to pay for it during the marriage.