Financial disagreements can be detrimental to any marriage. In fact, according to Psych Central, disagreements about finances are to blame for almost 30% of divorces in the U.S. If you and your soon-to-be ex-spouse have argued about money during your marriage, you might worry about coming up with a property settlement during your divorce.
If you are unable to reach an acceptable agreement, you might have little choice but to let a judge distribute your marital estate. While some states require judges to split marital assets equally, Colorado has an equitable distribution scheme.
What is equitable distribution?
In Colorado, rather than receiving an equal share of marital wealth, each divorcing spouse receives what is fair in the eyes of the court. This means Colorado must use principles of equity when dividing marital property.
What factors do judges consider?
To ensure property division is equitable, judges typically consider several factors when splitting up marital estates. Among others, these factors include the following:
- Each spouse’s contribution to the marriage
- Each spouse’s age, mental capacity and physical health
- Each spouse’s employment status, education level and income potential
- Each spouse’s standard of living during the marriage
It also is not uncommon for judges in the Centennial State to consider the length of the marriage when dividing marital property.
What is marital property?
Even though courts have the authority to divide marital states during divorce proceedings, they typically do not deal with separate property. Separate property is usually anything you owned before you married your husband or wife. It also probably includes gifts you received independently from your spouse.
Ultimately, while you might end up losing part of your marital wealth, you should be able to keep anything that is separate from your marital estate.
