If you’re considering a divorce and you live in Virginia, you’re probably wondering how, exactly, we divide assets here. You are definitely in the right place and I can help you begin to understand what to expect and what to ask for. Let’s jump right in, shall we? So, first thing’s first. Before we can...
How does Virginia law divide assets generated in a marriage?
If you, like everyone else, are reading Belle Burden’s memoir on marriage, Strangers, you probably noticed that prenups feature dramatically in the storyline. I have made no secret of the fact that, over the years, I do not have a strong positive opinion of prenups. In fact, my experience with prenuptial agreements throughout the years...
In Virginia, we classify property as either marital, separate, or hybrid before we divide it in divorce and, mostly, that comes down to looking at when and how the asset was earned, purchased, or acquired. Things earned by the partners to the marriage themselves during the marriage are usually marital but other things – whether...
Question: When my husband and I married, he owned a home. It was in his name but not paid off; we paid the mortgage together and made small improvements over time. Later, I became disabled. I took some money that I had – a little bit from an inheritance, and some from my retirement accounts...
There are so many anxiety-provoking things about the divorce process, it’s hard to speak to them all at once. Scratch that; I actually think it is literally impossible to speak to all the things at once. Fears about what will happen to the marital assets are rampant among divorcing women. It probably doesn’t help, either,...
If there is a phrase I HATE in family law – along with calling a woman a golddigger – it’s a man referencing being taken to the cleaners. It’s rooted in such, deep, toxic internalized misogyny that it’s hard for me to believe anyone really believes it, but – then again – the world has...
It can be confusing understanding how property is divided in Virginia divorce – or even what, exactly, is divided. In Virginia, there are three classifications for property – hybrid, marital, and separate – and only the marital portions are subject to division. Hybrid is, as its name suggests, part marital and part separate property. ...
Is it time to separate? That may be a strategic question and not just an emotional one. In Virginia, we classify separate property as anything that was earned, purchased, or acquired before the marriage or after the date of separation. (We also include anything you inherited in your sole name, anything that was a gift...