Going through a divorce is never easy and can be messy at times. There are many parts involved including the division of property and assets as well as when it comes to children involved. Establishing non-marital property may be the most frustrating part to deal with because each spouse is trying to make off with as much as they can and want the most of what was once jointly together.
Establishing non-marital property is never easy this is why hiring an experienced family attorney is the right way to go so that they can help outline what is rightfully yours. Non-marital property includes personal property you obtained or owned prior to the marriage, real property you obtained or owned prior to the marriage, and property you obtained by inheritance or gift from someone other than your spouse during the marriage. Also, compensation that you received for a personal injury or any increase in value of a separate property you owned unless your spouse made contributions that were directly correlated with the increase of value. One of the easiest ways to declare what type of property is yours, is to enter into a prenuptial agreement or a post nuptial agreement. This makes it so that your property is clearly yours and was not obtained through the course of the marriage, which would be included in the marital estate. If the property cannot be established through settlements then the court will have to decide after a trial which spouse will get what property. In the state of New York marital property is not always divided up equally and it is a lengthy process that is determined by multiple factors on what the equitable distribution is on the property.
Making sure you get what is rightfully yours when you finally end your marriage in a divorce is important. You should be able to walk away from the marriage with what you came in with as well as what you personally contributed to the marriage. Hiring an experienced attorney to help you with this is the best way to go about it so they can make sure you are getting a fair deal on everything.
