Among the more common issues addressed in divorce cases is splitting the property owned by the parting couple. A lengthy dispute over who gets what part of the marital estate can result in continued bitterness and can affect the couple’s children, both in terms of their health and their upbringing. To avoid this, Texas family court judges are usually required to seek a solution that is least harmful to the children, besides an equitable distribution of marital assets to both partners, like Collin, Texas, residents may know.
Again, given that work and family decisions cause people to move from one state to another, it is possible that either or both partners may have acquired assets, such as a house, in a state other than Texas. Such property also comes under scrutiny during a property division dispute, since ignoring it might inequitably enrich one partner over the other.
The decisions that courts need to make thus revolve around determining what might constitute “separate property,” whether in terms of real estate or cash assets. The two partners need to agree, in writing, that certain earmarked items are indeed separate property. The consideration of salaries and other earnings is, however, limited to only those earned during the term of the marriage.
The decision of a court regarding property division also covers other financial instruments, such as annuities, retirement plans and accounts, stock options, and insurance, with the court seeking to determine which partner has the right to these, unless an agreement has already been reached. No matter how well-to-do the partners may be, property division invariably becomes more complicated when the judge has to intervene and examine each and every asset and liability.