A divorce is a very messy situation to be in, for the partners in the marriage being dissolved and for the immediate family as well. During the marital time spent together, joint property will be acquired as well as liabilities incurred as a couple. Both the partners will bring individual property and liabilities also into the marriage, and that aspect will be dealt with in a separate way. There are certain rules that govern the property and debts acquired during the marriage as well as the way in which they are categorized (as being either individual property or as joint property).

Let us look at some of these rules in detail:

Joint property: All of the money earned during the marriage and everything that was bought along with that money comes under the definition of joint property, as well as all of the liabilities incurred during the period of the marriage as well – unless the liability was incurred before the marriage and is directed towards the individual property of a partner that was acquired prior to marriage as well. This is the definition of the term joint property. A well-recognized law firm like Point of Law will be able to guide you in understanding the sections of law that deal with the division of assets and liabilities acquired under a marriage in a much more personalized way, as each divorce is unique, and there can be certain aspects of the matter that need careful legal attention by a professional law firm.

Separate property: This constitutes any gifts or monies that have been given specifically to an individual partner in the marriage, or any insurance plans and pensions that had vested prior to the marriage (but the partner was not legally eligible to receive the funds then). If any property had been acquired with the funds prior to the marriage, then that property would remain in the hands of that partner alone. However, it is of importance to note that the onus of proof remains on the partner that claims separate property to show that separate funds were used for the purchase – a.k.a a money trail. This is legally required. If there was a business started by a single partner before marriage, but after getting married, if both the spouses contributed equally to the business, then most of the fund will become joint property and will have to be divided as per the prevalent law.

If some property was purchased by the couple using a mixture of joint funds as well as separate funds, then for the most part, the property will be considered as joint property. If children are involved in the divorce process, then the property (usually the home) will remain in the care of the parent who is most involved in their upbringing (usually the mother). For divorces not involving children, if the property is separate property, the the spouse owning it has the legal right to ask the other spouse to vacate from the property.