DIVORCE FAQs

No.

Maryland and Washington, DC are jurisdictions where the court uses equitable distribution. Equitable means what is just under the circumstances. Not what is equal. The court will not simply split everything down the middle. The court considers the needs and assets of each spouse.


To describe it in the simplest terms: The court will first decide which property is marital property. In this context, property can include money, real estate, investments, retirement, and other assets. Next, the court will determine the values of the marital property. Then, the court must apply certain factors to determine how to distribute the property, according to the law, to come up with a fair division. 


A number of things can affect what the court considers equitable, such as the length of the marriage, whether during the separation assets were dissipated or wasted, the amount of debts and liabilities, and what the parties' respective contributions were to the marriage. The court may even consider whether one spouse committed adultery and used marital funds to date. 


When the circumstances warrant it, the court will balance the equities by awarding one spouse an amount that makes up for the loss of marital funds.


The court will make its decisions based on its consideration of the evidence and arguments put forth by both parties. When more is at stake, it is essential to have an attorney handle your case to ensure the best outcomes for you. 


Book an appointment or call us! 

It depends.

Retirement that was earned during the marriage is considered marital property. In equitable distribution jurisdictions like Maryland and D.C., the court will first identify what pensions, retirement, profit sharing, or deferred compensation plans each spouse has. For ease of explanation and understanding, we will refer to these as retirement accounts. 


Generally, spouses are entitled to a portion of each other's retirement accounts. if one spouse has no retirement account or has a retirement account but has less money than the other, they will be entitled to some amount of the portion that was earned during the marriage. If they have a retirement account the amount of their entitlement may be offset by the portion that the other spouse would have been entitled to. 


The spouse who has the larger entitlement may receive their portion upon divorce, subject to any offset, by a transfer of the funds directly from the retirement plan into an account they designate. 


Typically, a withdrawal of funds from a retirement account will incur tax consequences, however, this is easily avoidable. Funds can be transferred to the other spouse directly from the retirement plan using an instrument like a QDRO (a qualified domestic relations order). A judge-signed QDRO lets the plan administrator for the account and the IRS know that money will be transferred to a spouse based on a divorce. 


An attorney can advise you on the best approach to distributing retirement funds during a divorce proceeding. 


If you are going through a divorce, or contemplating one, book an appointment with us!

It depends.

The home a married couple lives in is generally marital property if the home was bought after the parties got married. The marital home, which may also be called the family home, must be distributed equitably in the divorce proceedings. 


An equitable distribution of the home may be done in several ways. The most common are: selling the home, one spouse buying the other's interest in the home from them and refinance the mortgage so that it is their sole liability, or one spouse staying in the home with the parties' children for a period of time, up to 3 years after the divorce. 


A court may determine that the best way to resolve the distribution of the home is to sell it when it wants to ensure that some value of the home is given to the parties because there is a need for the money. If the only item of value was the marital home and neither party has an interest in keeping the home or the spouse who had an interest in keeping the home is unable to refinance it, it is common for a court to order it sold. 


To have an attorney help you make sure your rights are protected, contact us! 

Equitable Distribution in Maryland


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Equitable distribution of marital assets is based on what is just and fair after considering the facts and evidence, the circumstances of the case and the needs and assets of each spouse.


To balance the equities in a divorce, the court may make a monetary award that adjusts the equities and rights of the spouses concerning marital property under the law (Maryland Code § 8-201 of the Family Law Article).


The court may transfer ownership of an interest in a pension, retirement, profit sharing, or deferred compensation plan, from one spouse to either or both spouses; subject to the consent of any lien-holders, family use personal property, from one or both spouses to either or both spouses; and subject to the terms of any lien, real property jointly owned by the spouses and used as the principal residence of the spouses when they lived together.


The court may do this by ordering that real estate ownership be transferred to the other spouse; authorizing one spouse to purchase the other's ownership interest in the property; or both.


The court shall determine the amount and the method of payment of a monetary award, or the terms of the transfer of the interest in property or both, after considering these factors:


(1) the contributions, monetary and non-monetary, of each spouse to the well-being of the family;

(2) the value of all property interests of each spouse;

(3) the economic circumstances of each spouse at the time the award is to be made;

(4) the circumstances that contributed to the estrangement of the parties;

(5)  the duration of the marriage;

(6) the age of each spouse;

(7) the physical and mental condition of each spouse;

(8) how and when specific marital property or interest in property described in subsection (a)(2) of this section, was acquired, including the effort expended by each party in accumulating the marital property or the interest in property, or both;

(9) the contribution by either party of property to the acquisition of real property held by the spouses as tenants by the entirety;

(10) any award of alimony and any award or other provision that the court has made with respect to family use, personal property, or the family home; and

(11) any other factor that the court considers necessary or appropriate to consider in order to arrive at a fair and equitable monetary award or transfer of an interest in property, or both.



Equitable Distribution in D.C.


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Equitable distribution in D.C. is similar to Maryland in that D.C. courts use it with the goal of achieving what is fair, just, and reasonable.


D.C.'s divorce law establishes how to equitably divide marital property in a divorce. Courts consider the the following factors:


(1) The duration of the marriage or domestic partnership;


(2) The age, health, occupation, amount, and sources of income, vocational skills, employability, assets, debts, and needs of each of the parties;


(3) Provisions for the custody of minor children;


(4) Whether the distribution is in lieu of or in addition to alimony;


(5) Each party's obligation from a prior marriage, a prior domestic partnership, or for other children;


(6) The opportunity of each party for future acquisition of assets and income;


(7) Each party's contribution as a homemaker or otherwise to the family unit;


(8) Each party's contribution to the education of the other party, which enhanced the other party's earning ability;


(9)Each party's increase or decrease in income as a result of the marriage, the domestic partnership, or duties of homemaking and child care;


(10) Each party's contribution to the acquisition, preservation, appreciation, dissipation, or depreciation in value of the assets that are subject to distribution, the taxability of these assets, and whether the asset was acquired or the debt incurred after separation;


(11) The effects of taxation on the value of the assets subject to distribution.