Equitable Distribution Of Marital Property In The Courts

Pennsylvania divorce law defines what is and is not marital property. These laws also outline a series of 13 factors that lawyers and the court use as a guide in determining how marital assets and debts will be allocated between a husband and wife. There is no magical formula that tells you which factors are more important than others or how many of the 13 factors you need to show. The court has the discretion to make these decisions for you.

Factors which are relevant to the equitable division of marital property include the following:

1. The length of the marriage.
2. Any prior marriage of either party.
3. The age, health, station, amount and sources of income, vocational skills, employability, estate, liabilities, and needs of each of the parties.
4. The contribution by one party to the education, training, or increased earning power of the other party.
5. The opportunity of each party for future acquisitions of capital assets and income.
6. The sources of income of both parties, including, but not limited to, medical, retirement, insurance, or other benefits.
7. The contribution or dissipation of each party in the acquisition, preservation, depreciation or appreciation of the marital property, including the contribution of a party as homemaker.
8. The value of the property set apart to each party.
9. The standard of living of the parties established during the marriage.
10. The economic circumstances of each party at the time the division of property is to become effective.
    • The Federal, State, and local tax ramifications associated with each asset to be divided, distributed, or assigned, which ramifications need not be immediate and certain.
    • The expense of sale, transfer or liquidation associated with a particular asset, which expense need not be immediate and certain.
11. Whether the party will be serving as the custodian of any dependent minor children.