Are employment benefits considered marital property?
In most cases benefits accumulated through a person’s employment during the marriage are subject to division in divorce. The other spouse may be entitled to one-half of the value of the pension or 401(k) from the date of the marriage until the date of the separation or divorce. Same may be true of vacation time and frequent flyer miles. Is a spouse entitled to part of stock received as a gift by the other spouse during the marriage? It depends on the nature of the stock transaction and the intent of the person who gave the stock. If the stock was transferred to the spouse as part of employment compensation the other spouse may be entitled to portion of the stock in division of property. However, if the stock was given to one spouse as a gift it may be that spouse’ s separate property. In most states gifts are considered separate, non-marital property and are generally not subject to division during divorce. What happens to real estate purchased by one spouse prior to the marriage durin
