Dear Attorneys,
I have recently filed for divorce and I am looking to keep as many assets as possible. My attorney told me that I have a “long-term marriage” and I don’t understand what that means and what it has to do with my assets?
Sincerely,
Concerned Client
Dear Concerned Client,
We understand your concern, so we hope we can give you some clarification on what your attorney means by being in a long-term marriage. The term “long-term marriage” can span a range of marriage lengths, but usually once you are in a marriage over twenty years, it will be considered long-term. That means that most assets will be equitably divided (as in any divorce), but also, sometimes if there is a small pre-marital asset and a long term marriage (for example, one of you had an asset for two years prior to marriage, but you were married over forty years), that pre-marital asset becomes co-mingled and the person who had it as a pre-marital asset may not keep that portion. An exception to this would be if there is a pre-nuptial agreement involved.
That said, each case, and marriage-long term or not- is different, so we like to analyze each individual case and assess what the best outcome can be for each client.
Sincerely,
Wolf & Shore Law Group
*The situations represented in our Dear Attorneys column are entirely fictional and any resemblance to a specific case is unintentional. We cannot, and will not, offer legal advice to anyone who is not a client. However, if you do have questions or concerns, you should contact an attorney at your convenience.