Divorce - Separate Property, Community Property and Obligations

This guide discusses three concepts that will substantially affect the division of property and debt during a divorce: Community Property, Separate Property, and Community Obligations. You should thoroughly familiarize yourself with these concepts if you are considering or entering into a divorce.

As a married couple, the two of you are, in the eyes of the law, a single unit. There are certain things that you own together rather than separately. There may be certain debts that you owe together too. If one of you borrows money or buys something on credit, the other one can be made to pay.

If your marriage breaks up, you become two separate individuals again. Before that can happen, however, you have to decide what to do with the things you own as a couple and the money you owe as a couple.

The laws that cover these questions contain the terms community property, separate property, and community obligations. To classify your property and debts, you begin by defining the length of time you lived together as husband and wife. This is the period between your marriage day and the day you separated.

It may not be easy to decide exactly when you separated. In most cases, the day of the separation is the day the couple stopped living together. However, you may want to choose the day when you definitely decided to get a divorce and took some action to show this (like telling your spouse that you wanted a divorce).

Community Property

Community property is everything a husband and a wife own together. In most cases that includes

• Money you now have that either of you earned during the time you were living together as husband and wife.
• Anything either of you bought with money earned during that period. It doesn't matter if only one of you earned or spent the money.

Separate Property

Separate property is everything a husband or a wife owns separately. In most cases that includes

• Anything that either of you owned before you got married.
• Anything that either of you earned or received after your separation.
• Anything that either of you received as a gift or by inheritance, at any time.

Community Obligations

Community obligations are the debts a husband and a wife owe together. In most cases that includes anything you still owe on any debts either of you acquired during the time you were living together as husband and wife. (For instance, if you bought furniture on credit while you were married and living together, the unpaid balance is a part of your community obligations.) It usually doesn't matter if the debt was in the name of one spouse only, like on a credit card.

Take note, If you lived together before your marriage, you may wish to see a lawyer about possible additional rights either of you may have.