It’s likely that you’re duly focused on property division if you are an Arizona resident involved in the divorce process.
Most similarly situated people are. After all (and especially if your marriage was relatively long-tenured), it might well be the case that significant assets will feature in your decoupling.
Many couples own a home and even additional real estate. Arizona divorce matters often involve multiple private investment and company-sponsored savings accounts. Estate planning considerations can loom large in divorce via things like trust division. So too can myriad types of personal property ranging from vehicles and collectibles to gifts and insurance proceeds.
And then there is marital debt, which is also a major spotlight in divorce matters. How will that be resolved?
Many parties centrally involved with divorce-linked property distribution in Arizona can sum up the process in a single word: “complex.”
That is a term we use on our website at the proven Peoria Law Office of Katherine Kraus, where we provide tailored and empathetic advocacy on behalf of diverse clients with divorce-related concerns. We note therein that marital property division “can be a complex area of the law, especially when sole and separate assets are mixed with community assets.”
It is generally the case in Arizona that a court will construe a couple’s wealth as being jointly owned, absent proof that property was separately acquired and has never relinquished that status through so-called “commingling” with marital assets.
Asset identification, valuation and proper designation can understandably be a bit tricky in a divorce marked by a couple’s ownership of diverse and substantial sources of wealth. An experienced property division attorney can provide candid and knowledgeable advice and, when necessary, involve other professionals (such as forensic accountants and valuation experts) to help promote a client’s best interests.