Old & Stressed said:
Florida: Property purchased by husband before marriage with intent to be marital residence and refinanced 9 years after marriage with marital money. Title remains in husbands name and states "Single". This was done without wife's knowledge. All enhancements to property were with marital money. Is this property "marital" or "non-marital"?
My response:
In Florida, division of property acquired during marriage (including pension/401k type programs, and businesses) and division of debts are divided. Note that the assets to divide would usually not include inherited property, property brought into the marriage by one spouse, or property acquired via a gift from a third party solely to one spouse. (even if such gift is during the marriage.) But one exception to this principle may be where the property has been put into both names.
As a general rule, property acquired during the course of the marriage is divided 50/50 regardless of whose name it's in . . . Although the Courts can in an extraordinary case change the percentages. Note that a spouse may well be entitled to 1/2 the value of a business including good will, equipment and accounts receivable etc. (although if the business would no longer generate income if the spouse who works it walks away, then good will may not be a factor)
Property acquired during the course of the marriage by one or both parties is basically subject to a 50/50 split unless there are extraodinary circumstances which require different percentages.
There is usually going to be a 50/50 split even though for example one spouse worked ten hours a week while the other spouse worked fourty. The acquired property will still be considered a marital asset. In general the Court is not going to start looking into how hard each party worked during the marriage to contribute, although in extreme cases the Court can consider the level of contribution.
IAAL
[Edited by I AM ALWAYS LIABLE on 12-09-2000 at 12:38 PM]
