Granite Bay Property Division Lawyer
Granite Bay Property Division Attorney
Divorce is more than just ending a marriage; it is also the legal process of dividing marital assets and assigning separate ownership rights to the divorcing spouses. Property division tends to be one of the most contentious aspects of the divorce process, and California’s property division laws pertaining to divorce can seem unfair or overbearing in some cases. During this challenging time, remember that while divorce can be one of the most stressful experiences of a person’s life, having the right attorney on your side through this process can make the proceedings much less strenuous.
If you are planning to divorce in the near future and have any concerns about property division, it is essential to work with an experienced Granite Bay property division lawyer. Your legal team can help you prepare your financial disclosure and ensure a fair and reasonable outcome under California state laws. Additionally, your attorney can guide you through the other important aspects of your divorce, including child custody, child support, and adjusting your estate planning documents after your divorce is finalized.
A Granite Bay Property Division Attorney You Can Trust Call (916) 773-6100
Why Do I Need a Granite Bay Property Division Attorney?
While it is technically possible to handle your divorce without an attorney, doing so puts you at an extreme disadvantage, especially if your spouse has hired their own attorney. Ultimately, hiring an attorney is the best way to approach the divorce process. An experienced Granite Bay property division attorney can help you maintain a rational perspective of the situation despite the emotional aspects of the divorce process. Most importantly, the attorney can handle the procedural requirements of your case and allow you to approach divorce with greater confidence.
Regardless of whether you or your spouse filed for divorce, once the legal process begins it is vital to secure legal counsel as soon as possible. Your Granite Bay property division attorney can help you prepare for the proceedings ahead, explore alternative dispute resolution to save you time and money on your divorce, and guide you to a better result than you could have achieved on your own.
Why Choose McCunn Law?
When you need a Granite Bay property division attorney to represent you in your divorce, it is essential to choose an attorney with solid experience in California family law and the resources necessary to pursue a favorable outcome for your divorce case. Attorney Drummond T. McCunn has nearly 20 years of experience handling California family law cases including divorces, child custody determinations, trust administration, and estate planning.
Divorce entails much more than just property division and child custody. You can rely on Attorney McCunn and the team at McCunn Law to guide you through the diverse aspects of your divorce case. We can provide detailed professional guidance at every phase of your case, help you explore your options for resolving the disputes that commonly arise in property division determinations, and even coordinate expert witness testimony on your behalf should your case require it.
What Is California’s Law for Property Division in Divorce?
California is one of few states that upholds a community property law for divorce. This law requires that all marital property be divided evenly during divorce, regardless of why the divorce happened in the first place. Even if your spouse directly caused the breakdown of your marriage through infidelity or other immoral behavior, they would still have the right to claim half of the marital property in divorce.
There are some exceptions to this rule. For example, if one spouse were abusive toward the other or engaged in behavior that resulted in the disproportionate depletion of the couple’s community property, a Granite Bay family court judge would likely consider these factors. As such, they would influence the final determination. If your divorce entails any such factors, it is vital to discuss them in detail with your Granite Bay property division lawyer to determine if and how they will impact property division.
In most cases, community property guidelines in California require both divorcing spouses to provide complete and accurate financial disclosures. The spouses must provide the court with complete lists of all the assets and property they own, including property they owned prior to marrying and assets acquired during their marriage. When it comes time for you to deliver your financial disclosure, it is imperative to be truthful in every aspect of this stage of your divorce case. If you attempt to hide any assets to shield them from division and this activity is exposed, you could face severe legal penalties. In addition, hiding assets may lead to a less-than-favorable resolution to your property division proceedings.
What Counts as Marital Property?
California state law defines “marital property” as any property belonging to a married couple. In most situations, marital property includes property and assets gained during the course of a marriage. For example, if a couple gets married and buys a house together, both of their names appear on the mortgage and both spouses typically contribute toward paying the mortgage. Thus, the house qualifies as marital property. Marital property in California may also include:
- Income earned by both spouses during their marriage.
- Investment properties purchased during the marriage.
- Vehicles and other items purchased with community funds during the marriage.
If you are unsure whether a particular asset or piece of property qualifies as community property, your Granite Bay property division lawyer can help you determine what you can expect when it comes to the court’s interpretation of marital property for your divorce case.
What Qualifies as Separate Property?
“Separate property” includes anything you owned prior to your marriage, inheritance you received from blood relatives, and gifts given to you. If you want to prove that a particular asset or item is your separate property you must provide proof of ownership, such as documentation proving that you acquired the asset prior to your marriage. Typically, anything you owned before you got married will qualify as your separate property for the purposes of divorce. However, there are some potential exceptions to this rule.
California upholds a “transmutation” statute that states some separate property may transmute to community property under certain conditions. This means that one spouse’s efforts contributed to improving the value or maintaining the other spouse’s separate property during the marriage. For example, perhaps one spouse owned a struggling business prior to marrying. After marriage, their new spouse invests in the business and helps to make it profitable, helping the original owner turn it into a lucrative business. In this situation, a California family court judge would likely rule that the business has transmuted to community property due to the efforts and contributions of the other spouse.
The same logic may apply to a home you owned prior to marrying. If your spouse paid for renovations and remodeling that boosted the property value significantly, the court would likely transmute the house to community property. Additionally, if you gave your spouse legal ownership rights of any of your property during your marriage, such as adding your spouse as a joint owner of your bank account, these assets would also likely transmute to community property.
Can My Spouse and I Negotiate Property Division Privately?
California’s community property law may strive for fairness, but many divorcing couples find the process too intensive and would prefer to settle property division between themselves privately. If you litigate your divorce in a Granite Bay, CA family court, you should expect the judge to follow California’s community property statute to the letter, and you may not like the results of their determination. If you and your spouse are willing to explore alternative dispute resolution, you have a better chance of securing a more favorable result regarding property division.
When you choose mediation or other forms of alternative dispute resolution to settle your divorce, you and your spouse retain much more control over the outcome of your divorce. Instead of leaving everything in the hands of an impartial judge, mediation provides an opportunity to negotiate property division privately. For example, if a judge would normally require the two of you to sell your marital home and divide the proceeds, mediation could afford you the chance to negotiate a “trade” of other assets that would enable one of you to keep the house. Your Granite Bay property division lawyer can help you understand the benefits of mediation and help you take full advantage of them.
It is important to note that if you opt for alternative dispute resolution, you do not need to cover every single aspect of your divorce for it to be successful. In fact, some mediated issues still require a formal legal review in the family court, including child custody determination. Think of mediation as a means of streamlining the divorce process for the both of you. You, your spouse, and your respective attorneys can meet privately with a neutral mediator and negotiate as much of your divorce settlement as possible before moving to litigation to handle the remaining issues your divorce entails.
What Happens If My Spouse Wastes Marital Assets?
The court will take any wasting of marital assets very seriously, especially when such behavior occurs after divorce proceedings have begun. For example, if you serve your spouse with divorce papers and they use your credit card to accumulate a tremendous amount of debt, you should expect the court to weigh this behavior against them in your property division proceedings.
Unfortunately, divorce may bring out the worst in your soon-to-be-ex spouse. As a result, it is vital to keep close track of your assets and property once you have filed for divorce. If you suspect that your spouse has engaged in any wasteful spending to spite you, has hidden assets, or participated in any other financial malfeasance, consult your Granite Bay property division attorney immediately.
What to Expect from Your Granite Bay Property Division Lawyer
Property division can be one of the most challenging aspects of a divorce in Granite Bay, CA. Even if you and your spouse are mutually agreeable to the idea of divorce and are civil with one another, property division can dredge up strong emotions. For many people, it can be exceedingly difficult to imagine parting with half of your assets in divorce. Hiring an experienced Granite Bay property division lawyer is the best way to overcome the emotional strain of divorce and approach the process with confidence.
Your Granite Bay property division lawyer should begin handling your case by helping you complete your financial disclosure. Together, you will need to gather evidence and documentation that establishes your ownership rights over all your property. Next, your attorney can help you determine which assets qualify as your separate property. In some cases, you may need to do some extensive searching to recover the documents you will need to establish separate property ownership rights.
Once you have prepared your financial disclosure, your attorney should recommend that you attempt alternative dispute resolution. Mediation has quickly become the preferred method for handling divorce in the US. This option can help both you and your spouse save time and money on your divorce if both of you are willing to compromise.
Whether you are able to reach a divorce settlement through mediation or not, your divorce case will entail some level of courtroom proceedings. Your attorney can help you prepare for each courtroom appearance and assist you in navigating the entirety of your divorce process. To ensure each of these steps proceeds smoothly, it is essential to connect with a reliable Granite Bay property division attorney as soon as possible once you have made the decision to end your marriage.
Find Your Legal Team Today
Property division can be a stressful ordeal, but you can make it easier to manage with the right Granite Bay property division lawyer on your side. If you have made the decision to divorce and have any concerns about your property division determination, McCunn Law is available to assist you. Once you are ready to discuss your situation with an experienced Granite Bay property division attorney, contact McCunn Law and schedule a consultation with our team. We can review your financial information and help you prepare for your divorce proceedings with confidence.
Why Choose McCunn Law
Our methods for handling business owner divorce and family law issues are unique. We offer legal assistance for a range of family law cases, including:
- Adoption
- Business Owner Divorce
- Child Custody
- Child Support
- Child Support Modification
- Cohabitation Agreement
- Debt Resolution
- Divorce
- Domestic Partnership
- Domestic Violence Restraining Order
- Family Business
- Family Residence
- High Asset Divorce
- Inheritance Dispute
- Legal Separation
- Paternity
- Premarital Agreement
- Property Division
- Retirement Benefit Division
- Spousal Support
- Visitation Agreements
Mr. McCunn specializes in a holistic, project management approach which empowers you to make your own decisions throughout the process. He has a reputation as a peacemaker and his honest and pragmatic attitude towards divorce and other family law issues ensures you only pay for the services you need during your case.
“McCunn Law is a high-quality and highly knowledgeable legal team. I went into a consultation regarding child custody and was extremely happy with the plan and ultimately the results of my case. They create a plan with the client’s needs and wants in mind. Drummond is also great working with regarding what kind of budget a client would be able to afford. If I have any more legal needs in the future this is the office I will use every time.”
“McCunn Law is a high-quality and highly knowledgeable legal team. I went into a consultation regarding child custody and was extremely happy with the plan and ultimately the results of my case. They create a plan with the client’s needs and wants in mind. Drummond is also great working with regarding what kind of budget a client would be able to afford. If I have any more legal needs in the future this is the office I will use every time.”
“McCunn Law is a high-quality and highly knowledgeable legal team. I went into a consultation regarding child custody and was extremely happy with the plan and ultimately the results of my case. They create a plan with the client’s needs and wants in mind. Drummond is also great working with regarding what kind of budget a client would be able to afford. If I have any more legal needs in the future this is the office I will use every time.”