In a divorce proceeding “property” refers to the assets and liabilities of the parties. The property must be identified, characterized and valued before it can be divided. There are many different types of property involved in a divorce proceeding, such as a house, business, cars, investment accounts and bank accounts. The parties’ respective property must be identified and disclosed, whether the property was acquired before or after marriage, in order to characterize it as community property, separate property or a mixed/hybrid property.
Community property is property accumulated during the marriage and is considered to be equally owned by both parties. Separate property can include property obtained by gift or inheritance, property accumulated prior to marriage, or property accumulated after date of separation. Hybrid property refers to property that is a mixture of community property and separate property. For instance, a separate property asset with a community property interest, or, a community property asset with a separate property interest. Once the property is characterized, it can be valued. Different types of property require different valuation methods. Depending on the marital estate, the characterization and valuation of property can involve extremely complicated legal issues. Rallo|London has the necessary expertise to ensure your property rights are adequately protected during your divorce proceeding.