- Classify property as marital and non-marital
- Maryland
- All property acquired by the parties during marriage is marital
- Doesn't include property:
- Any property acquired before marriage
- As gifts or inheritance from third party
- Any property excluded by valid agreement, and
- Property traceable to any of the above
- A piece of property can be mixed marital/non-marital– to determine this look at the source of the funds
- Co-mingling of property type
- Mixing non-marital/marital property – marital if proper records aren’t kept to confirm the non-marital nature
- Appreciation of Property Value
- If non-marital property, appreciation that is active is marital
- Spouses contribution to appreciation doesn’t have to be direct (like actual labor for the business) for the appreciation to count as marital property or to have an interest
- Active Appreciation
- Increase in value attributable to efforts of one or both spouses – then marital property
- Focus on value of the property, not the amount that was paid for it
- Passive Appreciation
- Value increased due to market forces – non-marital
- Value the Property, MD 8-204
- Court determines value
- (a) Except as provided in subsection (b) of this section, the court shall determine the value of all marital property.
- Value of pension, retirement, profit sharing, or deferred compensation
- (b)(1) The court need not determine the value of a pension, retirement, profit sharing, or deferred compensation plan, unless a party has given notice in accordance with paragraph (2) of this subsection that the party objects to a distribution of retirement benefits on an “if, as, and when” basis.
- (2) If a party objects to the distribution of retirement benefits on an “if, as, and when” basis and intends to present evidence of the value of the benefits, the party shall give written notice at least 60 days before the date the joint statement of the parties concerning marital and non-marital property is required to be filed under the Maryland Rules. If notice is not given in accordance with this paragraph, any objection to a distribution on an “if, as, and when” basis shall be deemed to be waived unless good cause is shown
- The Court Divides the property using statutory factors outlined in MD 8-205
- Grant of award or transfer ownership of an interest in property
- (a)(1) Subject to the provisions of subsection (b) of this section, after the court determines which property is marital property, and the value of the marital property, the court may transfer ownership of an interest in property described in paragraph (2) of this subsection, grant a monetary award, or both, as an adjustment of the equities and rights of the parties concerning marital property, whether or not alimony is awarded.
- (2) The court may transfer ownership of an interest in:
- (i) a pension, retirement, profit sharing, or deferred compensation plan, from one party to either or both parties;
- (ii) subject to the consent of any lien holders, family use personal property, from one or both parties to either or both parties; and
- (iii) subject to the terms of any lien, real property jointly owned by the parties and used as the principal residence of the parties when they lived together, by:
- 1. ordering the transfer of ownership of the real property or any interest of one of the parties in the real property to the other party if the party to whom the real property is transferred obtains the release of the other party from any lien against the real property;
- 2. authorizing one party to purchase the interest of the other party in the real property, in accordance with the terms and conditions ordered by the court; or
- 3. Both
The courts goal in dividing marital property is to compensate for the investment in marriage instead of the emphasis that is placed on need that is used in determining alimony awards.
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