PROPERTY DIVISION

MARITAL PROPERTY CONSIDERATIONS

Community Property

Generally “community property” is all property, real or personal, wherever situated, acquired by a married person during the marriage while domiciled in California except as otherwise provided by statute.  While not intended as an exclusive statement describing all property that might be classified as community property, the basic rule is that all property acquired during marriage is community property unless it comes within a specified exception. Of course, the most common exception is that for separate property.

Separate Property

In general, separate property is all property owned by a spouse that is not classified as community property or quasi-community property. More specifically, separate property of a married person included all property owned by a person before marriage; all property acquired by the person after marriage by gift, bequest, devise, or descent; and the rents, issues, and profits of the foregoing property. As with community property, this statement is intended as a general rule rather than an exhaustive list.

Quasi-community property

In general, in California family law proceedings, the term “quasi-community property” refers to all real or personal property, wherever situated, acquired before or after January 1, 1994 by either spouse while domiciled elsewhere that would have been community property if the spouse who acquired the property had been domiciled in California at the time of its acquisition; or in exchange for real or personal property, wherever situated, that would have been community property if the spouse who acquired the property so exchanged had been domiciled in California at the time of it’s acquisition.

Treatment of marital property after separation

In general, community property or quasi-community property will be divided equally through the marital dissolution. With very few exceptions, separate property will retain its character as separate property after the separation. That generally means that separate property will continue to be the property of the spouse who acquired it separately despite the marital dissolution.

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