WHAT WILL MY WIFE GET IF WE GET A DIVORCE?

QUESTION: I'm a marine and Ive only been married for a little over a year. We married at the very end of my service. We also bought a house about four months ago and its in both of our names. The divorce is due to adultry on her part. Now she is threatening to court and take all that I own if I dont pay her off. What will she get if we get a divorce?

MY RESPONSE:

Your wife would likely be entitled to little or nothing in a divorce, after a one-year marriage.

California has no fault divorce, so your wife's adultery would not be relevant to a divorce.

The house that you bought four months ago is likely worth no more, and probably worth less, than what you paid for it.

If it has any equity, its equity would likely be eaten up by realtor commissions and costs of sale, if it could even sell.

If you put separate property into the down payment, to the extent that you can trace separate payment into the purchase of the house, you would be entitled to reimbursement of that separate payment out of the net sale proceeds before the balance, if any, would be divided as community property - and there likely would not be any balance.

Whatever you owned before the marriage is your separate property, and your wife isn't entitled to any of your separate property.

In terms of Spousal Support, that is based on your income and her income and the marital lifestyle as the major considerations.

If you earn significantly more than your wife, you could have a Spousal Support obligation, but that would last only 1/2 the duration of the marriage.

If your wife earns significantly more than you do, she could have a Spousal Support obligation to you, for 1/2 the duration of the marriage.

This educational blog is brought to you by DONALD F. CONVISER, an effective and aggressive Los Angeles Family Law Attorney and Divorce Lawyer serving clients in the courts of Los Angeles and Ventura County for over 35 years,owner of Warner Center Law Offices, with offices in Woodland Hills and Century City. Call 888.632.4447 or 818.880.8990 for a free confidential consultation with a Certified Family Law Specialist to discuss your divorce or family law issues. | www.conviser.net | www.conviserfamilylaw.com |