When a marriage comes to an end, many people either fail to seek legal advise and proceed blindly or rely on the well meant but erroneous advise of friends and family, thereby unknowingly leaving themselves open to consequences that could be avoided by seeking advise from someone who knows the law.
A common misperception is that when one spouse commits adultery, the court will “punish” that spouse by awarding a larger portion of marital property to the “innocent” spouse. This is not the case. The courts do not impose any type of penalty for adultery. California is a no-fault state meaning a request for divorce is granted regardless of evidence of wrongdoing.
In the simplest terms, California law assumes that each spouse owns 50 percent of each item of property acquired during marriage. Some examples of property are wages earned, employee benefits (pension plans, vacation pay, etc.), real property (house, condo, etc.), and personal property (cars, furniture, etc.). However, as is generally true in life, there are numerous exceptions and complexities with far-reaching and often unexpected effects that must be considered.
Many people approach the legal system expecting a “fair” outcome. The problem is the courts are bound by laws that have evolved by consideration of factors that are often obscure and appear to fall outside the common concept of fairness. For example, in dividing property, many couples agree that one will take a house and the other will take a pension plan as an even exchange. In so doing, it would seem fair to expect that when the pension recipient retires, income received from that pension would be exempt from spousal support paid to the person who received the house. However, under California law, the court would have to consider the pension income if the pension recipient is obligated to pay spousal support to the recipient of the house. Therefore, the recipient of the house would, in effect, receive the entire house and some of the pension.
It is unlikely this result would be foreseen by someone who does not know the law and would probably be perceived as unfair. The law is full of examples like this and could therefore be a hazardous trap to the unwary. Before entering an agreement that might result in an avoidable undesirable consequence, it is always best to seek legal advise before signing on the dotted line.
For more information about this and other family law topics, contact The Reape – Rickett Law Firm located in Valencia at 661-288-1000 or visit www.DivorceDigest.com .