Division of Property in Santa Clara County Divorce Cases

When you and your spouse pursue divorce you should retain a good and experienced divorce attorney who will guide you through the entire divorce process from beginning to end. The Law Offices of Thomas Chase Stutzman, A Professional Corporation, has been helping people navigate through the difficulties of Santa Clara County divorce cases for over 35 years. Those cases include many sub-parts, including child visitation rights, child custody, division of property, child and spousal support, pre and postnuptial agreements, delinquent support payments, and restraining orders.

Before retaining the services of a good divorce attorney, it is advisable that you take the time to schedule a consultation with the attorney to discuss your case and determine if you can work well with them. The Law Offices of Thomas Chase Stutzman provides dedicated San Jose divorce lawyers and paralegals to help you navigate through one of the most complex areas of the law. The emotional issues in a typical divorce case can often drive the case more than the legal issues, and this added layer of complexity and unpredictability is exactly why you want a good divorce lawyer with experience.

California will grant a divorce without determining who is at fault, and the filing spouse does not need to prove that the other spouse was at fault. The filing spouse only has to claim irreconcilable differences in California. The no fault divorce should be simple, but dividing the property is often anything but simple. California is a community property state, and this means that property and earnings that were acquired during the marriage will presumptively be divided 50-50 between both parties. However, there are exceptions to the 50 – 50 rule, including property acquired before or after marriage, inheritances, gifts, and certain personal injury damages awarded during the marriage. Those exceptions are actually just the beginning of the potential complexity, since usually the battle is not over the exceptions but instead over whether the exception can be proven. It is often the case that a party to a divorce finds that due to their failure to trace their separate property that has been commingled with community property their separate property effectively becomes community property – meaning that they have made an unintentional gift of half of what is theirs to the last person on Earth they wanted to make a gift to.

When you retain the Law Offices of Thomas Chase Stutzman to represent you in your divorce case, you have the added reassurance that not only does your attorney have experience and expertise in divorce law, but the firm’s rolodex also holds the names and contact information for many useful experts who you may need. A good CPA who can trace your separate property, a good QDRO expert to divide the retirement fairly, and/or a good attorney who knows criminal, bankruptcy or trust law are things you might need. Knowing where to start looking for an expert, and knowing if you should start looking for an expert are things you will get when you hire a good divorce lawyer who has experience.