Property Division in a Divorce or Legal Separation

Divorce is the legal mechanism of separating all of the assets and debts that were acquired during the marriage.   Before it is possible to divide marital property, the court first needs to determine what is considered marital property, as well as assign it a value.

What is Marital Property?

Generally in Colorado any property or debt gained by either party during the course of the marriage is considered to be marital property.  The exception is anything specified in a valid prenuptial or postnuptial agreement, inheritance, or gifts that has not been mixed or comingled with marital assets or debt. This can be a complicated process when the assets and debts are of a mixed character, such as a house purchased prior to the marriage but shared during the marriage.

Marital property may consist of:

• Financial obligations, such as loans and credit card debt
• Personal property
• Real estate holdings
• Retirement funds
• Business interests
• Student loans, incurred during the marriag

In a divorce in Colorado, the division of property should be equitable given the circumstances of the marriage.  Equitable does not necessarily mean 50/50 or equal. Some circumstances that would justify a deviation from an equitable divide include use of funds for non-marital purposes, contribution of each spouse to the acquisition of the asset or debt, and economic waste.