In this video I will be discussing the topic of what happens if you place your spouse’s name on property that you own prior to marriage. To start, unless you do something to change this rule of law, or unless lump sum alimony is awarded, which is a separate video that I’ve done, property that you own prior to marriage remains your separate non-marital property, and will not be awarded to your spouse in a divorce.
In simpler terms, you owned it before marriage, you will continue to own it after marriage. Your spouse will have no interest in it. However, and it is a frequent occurrence, that after marriage a spouse – say the wife – will put her husband’s name on the title of the property that the wife owned prior to marriage. She will do so with good intentions, and think nothing of the legal consequences if the parties ever get a divorce and unfortunately, or fortunately, depending on which side of the issue you are on, there are indeed major legal repercussions to this act.
In general, no matter your intent, unless there is strong evidence that placing your spouse’s name on the title of the property was not meant as a gift, under Georgia law, your placing your spouse’s name on property you owned before marriage will be seen as gifting him or her the property. What this means is that you will lose your non-marital interest in the property, and the entirety of the property will suddenly become marital property, as if you never owned it before marriage. It works like this. Say husband owns a house prior to marriage that has $200,000 of equity in it.
Husband marries wife, and a few years into the marriage, husband puts wife on the title to the home, so they own the home jointly. Then, a few years later, the parties get a divorce. What is the effect of putting the wife’s name on that title? Well, if husband had not put his wife’s name on the title, at the time of the divorce, the $200,000 of equity would remain his premarital property, and wife would not be entitled to any of it, because it’s all husband’s premarital property. Nor would she be given any credit for any of the appreciation that may have accrued over the years on the property.
However, now, because he did put his wife on the title of the property, she is now entitled to 50% on the entire equity in the home, plus 50% of any appreciation on the home, and 50% of any mortgage pay down that occurred during the marriage. The long and short of it is do not place your spouse’s name on property that you owned prior to marriage without first consulting an attorney.
As to legal impact this might have on your rights to that property, if you do not intend a gift, if you intend to transfer to protect the home from creditors, a transfer of title to your spouse can be accomplished in a way that does not potentially gift your non-marital interest away. Each divorce is different, and the circumstances unique, and in each divorce there are traps like this that can be taken advantage of by a divorcing spouse. At Shaw Law Firm, we understand the nuances of family law very well, and we welcome your inquiries and telephone calls. Thank you.
In this video I will be discussing the topic of what happens if you place your spouse’s name on property that you own prior to marriage. To start, unless you do something to change this rule of law, or unless lump sum alimony is awarded, which is a separate video that I’ve done, property that you own prior to marriage remains your separate non-marital property, and will not be awarded to your spouse in a divorce.
In simpler terms, you owned it before marriage, you will continue to own it after marriage. Your spouse will have no interest in it. However, and it is a frequent occurrence, that after marriage a spouse – say the wife – will put her husband’s name on the title of the property that the wife owned prior to marriage. She will do so with good intentions, and think nothing of the legal consequences if the parties ever get a divorce and unfortunately, or fortunately, depending on which side of the issue you are on, there are indeed major legal repercussions to this act.
In general, no matter your intent, unless there is strong evidence that placing your spouse’s name on the title of the property was not meant as a gift, under Georgia law, your placing your spouse’s name on property you owned before marriage will be seen as gifting him or her the property. What this means is that you will lose your non-marital interest in the property, and the entirety of the property will suddenly become marital property, as if you never owned it before marriage. It works like this. Say husband owns a house prior to marriage that has $200,000 of equity in it.
Husband marries wife, and a few years into the marriage, husband puts wife on the title to the home, so they own the home jointly. Then, a few years later, the parties get a divorce. What is the effect of putting the wife’s name on that title? Well, if husband had not put his wife’s name on the title, at the time of the divorce, the $200,000 of equity would remain his premarital property, and wife would not be entitled to any of it, because it’s all husband’s premarital property. Nor would she be given any credit for any of the appreciation that may have accrued over the years on the property.
However, now, because he did put his wife on the title of the property, she is now entitled to 50% on the entire equity in the home, plus 50% of any appreciation on the home, and 50% of any mortgage pay down that occurred during the marriage. The long and short of it is do not place your spouse’s name on property that you owned prior to marriage without first consulting an attorney.
As to legal impact this might have on your rights to that property, if you do not intend a gift, if you intend to transfer to protect the home from creditors, a transfer of title to your spouse can be accomplished in a way that does not potentially gift your non-marital interest away. Each divorce is different, and the circumstances unique, and in each divorce there are traps like this that can be taken advantage of by a divorcing spouse. At Shaw Law Firm, we understand the nuances of family law very well, and we welcome your inquiries and telephone calls. Thank you.
Again that depends on whether it’s a non-contested divorce with all terms settled or whether it’s a contested divorce. Contested divorces go anywhere for $2,500, $20,000, $30,000 or higher. I would say that if you have a contested middle class divorce, the average is between $5 and $20,000. If you have a contested divorce with an estate in the seven figure range, you’re probably talking $20 to $50,000 in cost. If you have an uncontested divorce in which all the terms are agreed to, we can usually do that for a flat fee of around $2,000.
By: Scott Shaw
Again that depends on whether it’s a non-contested divorce with all terms settled or whether it’s a contested divorce. Contested divorces go anywhere for $2,500, $20,000, $30,000 or higher. I would say that if you have a contested middle class divorce, the average is between $5 and $20,000. If you have a contested divorce with an estate in the seven figure range, you’re probably talking $20 to $50,000 in cost. If you have an uncontested divorce in which all the terms are agreed to, we can usually do that for a flat fee of around $2,000.
By: Scott Shaw
Under Georgia law, there are 13 different reasons for a divorce and reason number 13 says the marriage is irretrievably broken and there’s no chance to patch it up. That’s all you need to do. You need to allege that the marriage is irretrievably broken and you can’t patch it up. Now your spouse can actually contest even that issue, but it’s not done very often. In the end, you really don’t need a reason other than you guys can’t get along anymore.
But if you have a reason, there are 12 other reasons as well such as adultery, cruelty, drug abuse, and many other factors that are sometimes relevant to a divorce. Quite often, we take this issue for granted because it’s just a routine issue and no one is going to contest the need for the divorce, but in the right case, the grounds for divorce can be very critical.
By: Scott Shaw
Under Georgia law, there are 13 different reasons for a divorce and reason number 13 says the marriage is irretrievably broken and there’s no chance to patch it up. That’s all you need to do. You need to allege that the marriage is irretrievably broken and you can’t patch it up. Now your spouse can actually contest even that issue, but it’s not done very often. In the end, you really don’t need a reason other than you guys can’t get along anymore.
But if you have a reason, there are 12 other reasons as well such as adultery, cruelty, drug abuse, and many other factors that are sometimes relevant to a divorce. Quite often, we take this issue for granted because it’s just a routine issue and no one is going to contest the need for the divorce, but in the right case, the grounds for divorce can be very critical.
By: Scott Shaw
Hello. My name is Scott Shaw, founder and principal of Shaw Law Firm, LLC. A law firm I founded in 1995. Child custody along with divorce and other areas of family law are our only area of legal practice. We do not accept any other types of cases.
In this video, I will be discussing the topic of appeals. What happens when the trial judge gets it wrong? It is very frustrating and can be very disillusioning actually, as we believe trial judges know the law and will apply the law properly. And for the most part they do. However when they don’t, what happens? The answer is you appeal.
In the past three months alone, we have won appeals and have overturned the decisions of three different trial judges. And we expect to win a fourth one shortly. In some of these cases, the law is rather plain and clear, at least to me, and yet the judge decided otherwise. So we appeal these cases to try to fix these things. It can be disillusioning to have to deal with an appeal. You feel like you did something wrong, or you lost the case. But that is not always the case.
As an example, one appeal that we just won involve a case where the trial court personally sanction me. Why? Because I made a legal argument that happened to be right. But the court thought it was wrong, and the opposing attorney to this day still does not understand it. Yet to me it was simple and straightforward, and I knew I was right. So sure enough we appealed it. And on appeal, not only did the judge of the supreme court overturn the sanctions against me, the court also said I was right. My client won the case.
So long and short, sometimes trial courts do not get it right. And when they do not, we still have our remedy, and we can still win the case. At Shaw Law Firm we have a track record of successfully handling appeals, and we welcome your inquiries regarding that. Keep in mind that to appeal the decision, there are tight deadlines. Usually you have to file your endorsed appeal no later than 30 days from the date of entry of the order that you want to appeal. We will be happy to speak with you regarding any potential appeal issue that you may have. Thank you.
By: Scott Shaw
Hello. My name is Scott Shaw, founder and principal of Shaw Law Firm, LLC. A law firm I founded in 1995. Child custody along with divorce and other areas of family law are our only area of legal practice. We do not accept any other types of cases.
In this video, I will be discussing the topic of appeals. What happens when the trial judge gets it wrong? It is very frustrating and can be very disillusioning actually, as we believe trial judges know the law and will apply the law properly. And for the most part they do. However when they don’t, what happens? The answer is you appeal.
In the past three months alone, we have won appeals and have overturned the decisions of three different trial judges. And we expect to win a fourth one shortly. In some of these cases, the law is rather plain and clear, at least to me, and yet the judge decided otherwise. So we appeal these cases to try to fix these things. It can be disillusioning to have to deal with an appeal. You feel like you did something wrong, or you lost the case. But that is not always the case.
As an example, one appeal that we just won involve a case where the trial court personally sanction me. Why? Because I made a legal argument that happened to be right. But the court thought it was wrong, and the opposing attorney to this day still does not understand it. Yet to me it was simple and straightforward, and I knew I was right. So sure enough we appealed it. And on appeal, not only did the judge of the supreme court overturn the sanctions against me, the court also said I was right. My client won the case.
So long and short, sometimes trial courts do not get it right. And when they do not, we still have our remedy, and we can still win the case. At Shaw Law Firm we have a track record of successfully handling appeals, and we welcome your inquiries regarding that. Keep in mind that to appeal the decision, there are tight deadlines. Usually you have to file your endorsed appeal no later than 30 days from the date of entry of the order that you want to appeal. We will be happy to speak with you regarding any potential appeal issue that you may have. Thank you.
By: Scott Shaw
In equitable division, stock options are subject to be divided in a divorce. Now, stock options can be a very complicated asset to divide. Not all employer plans actually allow stock options to be divided to each party, so you often have to determine what the monetary value of the stock option is to make sure the options can be divided.
Sometimes, you have to become a trustee for your spouse. A very complicated issue, and often is very hotly contested, is what if there are contingencies to be awarded of your stock option or other investment vehicle. For example, let’s say you have options that you’ve been awarded, but you only get them if you remain in the company – the golden handcuffs or something. You can argue that those options, even though it’s your option to quit the company, should not be awarded as marital property because if you don’t work the four years after the marriage, you don’t get them.
These are hotly contested issues. But, in general, your typical stock option that has been invested during the marriage needs to be valued and the property is divided in equitable division in the State of Georgia.
By: Scott Shaw
In equitable division, stock options are subject to be divided in a divorce. Now, stock options can be a very complicated asset to divide. Not all employer plans actually allow stock options to be divided to each party, so you often have to determine what the monetary value of the stock option is to make sure the options can be divided.
Sometimes, you have to become a trustee for your spouse. A very complicated issue, and often is very hotly contested, is what if there are contingencies to be awarded of your stock option or other investment vehicle. For example, let’s say you have options that you’ve been awarded, but you only get them if you remain in the company – the golden handcuffs or something. You can argue that those options, even though it’s your option to quit the company, should not be awarded as marital property because if you don’t work the four years after the marriage, you don’t get them.
These are hotly contested issues. But, in general, your typical stock option that has been invested during the marriage needs to be valued and the property is divided in equitable division in the State of Georgia.
By: Scott Shaw
In equitable division, one of the most issues that come up is to try to ascertain what is marital property and what is not marital property. Because if your property’s determined to be non-marital property, it cannot be divided according to accrual distribution. What non-marital property is, generally speaking, is if you own the property prior to marriage, you inherited the property or you were gifted the property. If you can prove that, the property remains yours.
One of the most complicating factors is what if you have non-marital property that has both portions of marital and non-marital aspects to it. Valuing that property and proving up your non-marital interest is one of the most valuable issues that a good attorney can do for you. Whereas, marital property is all subject to be divided between the parties and the spouses in a divorce.
By: Scott Shaw
In equitable division, one of the most issues that come up is to try to ascertain what is marital property and what is not marital property. Because if your property’s determined to be non-marital property, it cannot be divided according to accrual distribution. What non-marital property is, generally speaking, is if you own the property prior to marriage, you inherited the property or you were gifted the property. If you can prove that, the property remains yours.
One of the most complicating factors is what if you have non-marital property that has both portions of marital and non-marital aspects to it. Valuing that property and proving up your non-marital interest is one of the most valuable issues that a good attorney can do for you. Whereas, marital property is all subject to be divided between the parties and the spouses in a divorce.
By: Scott Shaw
Georgia is an equitable division of property state and not a community property state. What that means is assets are not necessarily divided 50-50 between the parties. There are a lot of factors that go into the case. In the right case, you can argue that one party should get more than half of the assets. In most cases, in the end, once you’re able to ascertain what the assets are and put a valuation on them, the assets will generally be divided 50-50 between the parties.
By: Scott Shaw
Georgia is an equitable division of property state and not a community property state. What that means is assets are not necessarily divided 50-50 between the parties. There are a lot of factors that go into the case. In the right case, you can argue that one party should get more than half of the assets. In most cases, in the end, once you’re able to ascertain what the assets are and put a valuation on them, the assets will generally be divided 50-50 between the parties.
By: Scott Shaw
Dividing automobiles is sometimes simple. If the automobile is in each respective parties names and each respective party owes the debt in the automobile, then that’s not a problem. The problem comes, not from the title on the automobile which can easily transfer, the problem comes by whose name is on the debt that financed the automobile because absolutely, unless there’s no other choice, you do not want to give your ex-spouse the car that you’re liable to owe the money on. That just leads to bad consequences and that’s an issue we need to address in many divorces.
By: Scott Shaw
Dividing automobiles is sometimes simple. If the automobile is in each respective parties names and each respective party owes the debt in the automobile, then that’s not a problem. The problem comes, not from the title on the automobile which can easily transfer, the problem comes by whose name is on the debt that financed the automobile because absolutely, unless there’s no other choice, you do not want to give your ex-spouse the car that you’re liable to owe the money on. That just leads to bad consequences and that’s an issue we need to address in many divorces.
By: Scott Shaw
You begin your divorce by contacting a good attorney who knows what they are doing, and your attorney will consult with you, advise you whether you should even get a divorce, talk about the relevant issues you have to deal with, whether now is even a good time to file, what sort of planning you need to do, and the attorney will instruct you how to proceed forward.
By: Scott Shaw
You begin your divorce by contacting a good attorney who knows what they are doing, and your attorney will consult with you, advise you whether you should even get a divorce, talk about the relevant issues you have to deal with, whether now is even a good time to file, what sort of planning you need to do, and the attorney will instruct you how to proceed forward.
By: Scott Shaw
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