South Florida Divorce Attorney Eric N. Klein

How Divorce Might Affect Your Inheritance

Marriage is a beautiful event. However, there are unfortunate cases where something in the relationship has changed and the couple can no longer be together. When this happens, the separation can be utterly devastating, not only emotionally, but also financially.

The Marital Property Act was instituted to mandate the equal distribution of property obtained during the marriage. Under this act, there are two kinds of property: community and separate. Community property is the set of marital assets obtained by either individual in the duration of the marriage. This property is divided via the Equitable Distribution Law. Under this law, each asset is not necessarily divided equally. Arbiters consider the circumstances of the marriage and divide it accordingly.

Separate property is individual property that is obtained before the marriage. Usually, this property remains yours after the divorce has taken place. In most states, an inheritance is considered to be separate property. In the case that the inheritance has been used to benefit the both of you, the property then becomes communal. Thus, it will be divided between the two of you evenly. This can happen in a number of ways, including the use of a joint account, efforts to increase the value of the inheritance, or requiring that both parties pay taxes on the amount.

The specific details of such a situation can by quite tricky. It is very beneficial to employ of the experience of a family attorney who knows the intricacies of property division during a divorce. If you would like more information on how specific law service may benefit you, contact the Boca Raton family attorneys of the Eric N. Klein law firm at 561-353-2800.