Can my spouse claim a portion of my legal settlement in divorce?

by | Jul 31, 2017 | Firm News, Property Division |

This is a very important question to ask regarding property division in the state of Connecticut. Unfortunately, it is difficult to provide a precise answer because many factors will come into play before the court will make a decision.

For example, if you have received a personal injury settlement and are planning a divorce, the court will look at whether or not you have commingled your settlement funds with your marital property. The term commingling means mixing your personal assets with your marital assets.

Specifically, if you deposit settlement funds into a joint bank account, you have commingled your funds. A court may or may not look at commingled settlement funds as marital property. On the other hand, if you have kept your settlement in a separate account and have not dipped into it for use as family funds, the settlement might be safe during property division.

The above is just one factor a family law court will look into. Another factor relates to what kind of damages you received in a settlement. Some courts may consider a pain and suffering damage award as a separate asset during the property division process. This would mean that you do not have to share such an award with your soon-to-be-ex.

The best advice for you is to take the next logical step and talk about these issues with a Hartford divorce attorney. This way, you can get legal counsel that relates specifically to the facts of your case. In other words, working with a lawyer is the best way to protect your personal assets during complex property division issues.

Source: Huffington Post, “3 Ways to Protect Your Personal Injury Award or Settlement from Your Divorce,” Diane L. Danois, accessed July 24, 2017

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