Property Division
Property Division in Dissolution or Domestic Partnership Proceedings
As a community property jurisdiction, California aims for the even division of marital property between the spouses in a divorce case. Marital property — with some exceptions — is anything acquired by either spouse during the marriage. At the Bez Law Firm, P.C., we've helped clients resolve property division through approaches as different as a stipulated marital settlement agreement at the beginning of the case to sharply contested court hearings on complex property valuation or characterization problems. Property division is an issue in domestic property proceedings as well. Contact the Bez Law Firm, P.C. for more information.
To learn how our experience and understanding of the California Family Code can help you with the property division issues in your divorce, contact Sacramento family law lawyer Dena Bez for a free consultation about your legal options.
Characterization and valuation are the main questions in property division
Before you can see what the marital estate is worth, you need to know what's in it. Your lawyer's ability to characterize a valuable asset as community or separate property can have a significant effect on the value of your marital estate. We can give you reliable guidance as to whether a particular item should be counted as part of the property to be divided.
Sometimes the value of particular assets needs to be determined through appraisal, comparable sales or application of the right accounting method. Our goal is to establish the value of the marital estate accurately so that division of the community property can proceed on fair terms.
We can help you resolve your property division problems, such as:
- Negotiation and documentation of a marital settlement agreement in an uncontested divorce
- Establishing the separate character of such assets as gifts, inheritances or personal injury damages
- Tracing contributions of separate property toward the payment of community debts or liabilities
- Family business valuation questions
- Distinguishing between interest income and appreciation in value
- Using QDROs to divide marital interests in defined benefit plans
- Dividing pension and retirement benefits, including 401(k) accounts
- Making sure that your spouse has accurately identified and disclosed income and assets
- Determining the enforceability of prenuptial or postnuptial agreements
- Revising your estate plan to reflect post-divorce property settlements
- Property division problems in domestic partnership dissolution
For more information about the best ways to protect your rights on any property division issue in family court, contact the Bez Law Firm, P.C. in Sacramento.
