When you’re divorcing, it can seem like there are a million things that all require your attention. It’s an emotionally and financially challenging time for both parties concerned.
One thing you’ll want to make sure of is that your interest in your most valuable assets remains protected. If you and your spouse have worked to build a property portfolio between you throughout your marriage, you’ll need to know how to preserve your rightful interest in it. For example, if you have one or more rental properties, do you need to sell up or can one party keep them? Here’s what the law in North Dakota says about situations like these.
Parties are free to make a decision themselves
In North Dakota, divorcing couples are free to reach a mutual agreement concerning how to distribute their shared assets. This can be accomplished by either opting to sell or dividing the properties. Working with an attorney can help individual spouses protect their interests during negotiations and/or mediation.
Marital property is divided equitably in North Dakota
If both parties cannot agree on how to split their properties, they can ask the court to intervene. Marital property in North Dakota is to be divided equitably. This does not necessarily mean that the value of a marital estate must divided evenly; rather, the court must decide what is fair. It will take into account a variety of elements, including the duration of the marriage and the level of income earned by each person when settling a couple’s case.
It’s crucial to understand that the court will only take into account jointly owned property. If the parties cannot agree between them what is separate and what is jointly owned, a classification process will be used to make the determination.
After compiling a list of all the properties involved, the court may conduct a valuation before making a judgment. Either the properties can be sold and the proceeds distributed among the parties, or the properties can just simply be divided up.
Protecting your rights when divorcing can be complex, especially when there’s a lot at stake. The process can be made so much easier when you have the right support in place.
