What Is Marital and Separate Property in a Tennessee Divorce?

In your divorce, property division decisions may carry great weight for you, as they may significantly affect your economic security, especially in the scary time of being financially independent for the first time in a long time. For example, if you have a diminished earning capacity because you gave up your professional career during your marriage, you may rely on retirement funds to primarily support you. At the same time, you may not want to keep your marital residence if the mortgage payments and property taxes would cause you great hardship. This is why the Tennessee family court utilizes an equitable distribution system for exclusively marital property. That said, follow along to find out what the court considers marital versus separate property and how one of the proficient Clarksville property division lawyers at Fendley and Birch can work to ensure you get your fair share.

What counts as marital and separate property in a Tennessee divorce?

Generally speaking, marital property includes assets and even debts acquired by either spouse during the marriage. Importantly, it may not matter if only one spouse’s name was provided on the title or other relevant documentation. This means that separate property is any asset or debt that was had before the marriage or otherwise obtained outside of the marital situation. Below are more specific examples of each:

• The Tennessee family court usually views marital property as:
  • Your marital home and real estate properties.
  • Your joint bank accounts and investment accounts.
  • Your retirement accounts and pensions earned during your marital partnership.
  • Your debts incurred for family or marital purposes.
  • Your motor vehicles and marital household furnishings.
• The Tennessee family court usually views separate property as:
  • The assets you owned and the debts you incurred before your marriage.
  • The inheritances you received as a beneficiary of your deceased loved one.
  • The gifts that one of your family members made out exclusively in your name.
  • The settlement you receive for a certain type of personal injury claim.

To reiterate, Tennessee’s equitable distribution system only divides marital property in a fair and just manner. This means you may have to fight to ensure the family court does not accidentally misclassify your separate property. This happens more often than you may realize; for instance, the genesis of your inheritance may be unclear if you deposited it into a joint bank account and used it to fund a renovation project for your marital residence.

Why must I know if my spouse is hiding marital property in our divorce?

In addition to distinguishing your separate property, you must identify whether your spouse is hiding marital property from you. Sadly, your spouse may attempt to conceal, undervalue, or disguise property to earn a greater share in the divorce, compromising the fairness of the equitable distribution system. This may be done through temporarily transferring money to a family member’s account, delaying bonuses, commissions, or contract payouts, underrating a business’s assets and net worth, etc.

To make sure you are not being cheated, you may hire a forensic accountant for your case. If this inappropriate behavior is uncovered, the court may choose to reward you with a larger share of your marital property, and your spouse may face other serious consequences. If you wish to gain more clarity on the situation you are dealing with, the best way to get it is by consulting with one of the talented Clarksville family lawyers. Get in touch with our team at Fendley and Birch today.