The stats are implacable – about 1/3 marriages being concluded in Poland end in divorce. Even though the first thing that comes into our head in such situation are emotions, we should be guided by good judgment and care also about practical cases. One of them is the apportionment of property. What part of common tabernacle accrue to ex-wife and what part to ex-husband? What factors influence on that proportion and on which level we can affect on it?
Divorce is a very hard life experience – each person who had ever came through that moment in life will agree with that statement. We have to engage with signs of negative emotions associated with ending of such important stage in life but the same we need to keep a clear mind which is unnecessary in handling of formal investigation. Although money rarely are the first thing which comes to mind, while our serious relationship is slowly getting to end it is worth to think. There is no denying that material issues play in our life an important role and when the first emotions associated with divorce will leave us, we will be grateful to ourselves that we have even covered that possibility.
If the couple before the wedding did not establish and sign matrimonial agreement, in the time of marriage is being created matrimonial property. Of course in case of divorce it must to be stopped and in consequence – possessions will become divided between ex-spouses. The common yet wealth stops to be co-ownership in fractional parts. Theoretically it means that husband or wife can manage their percent of co-ownership. However in practice something what need to be identified are items, real estate etc. which create a composition of each fractions to give a possibility for using them freely.
In the moment of marriage there are creating three property weights. One of them is the property of both spouses what means that, which they will get during the lasting of an official relationship. Two other masses are personal spouses’ estates what means those which they had before marriage. The personal estate is treated also as something what the given person will inherit during the period of marriage lasting (unless the testator will had another wish), that, what the person will get in form of donation and owned by that person copyrights. Surely during marriage period all of those components are treated as entirely which belongs to couple. However the division matters during divorce when it comes to end of property association.
If our parting take place in the relative peaceful atmosphere and we want to prevent the painstaking sharing of our community by court we can share by estate on our own basis under verified notary agreement.
In the case of property division by the court, the affair looks a bit different. In principle every ex-spouse have rights to fellowship however there are also circumstances in which that rule is not applicable. Both ex-husband and ex-wife can demand during the division taking into account the grade in which each of them contributed to common property creation. The following rule may seem apparently unfair: a lot of “traditional” Polish marriages are functioning in that way that husband provides main family income and wife is taking over the house and common progeny. Luckily that issue was taken into advantage therefore there are also included the factors like personal work during raising a child and in common household. In principle the division of property does not have association with who is responsible for marriage closure. For example if one of the partner was cheating the other, it does not have affect on hi/her right to equal part of common livestock. However if second spouse will prove that the cheating person was spending common money on pleasures with mistress/paramour (for example common holidays, visits in expensive restaurants and expensive gifts etc.), then the person can demand their unequal division.
If one of the spouses inherited in inheritance the property which then couple sold and for received in that way resources the couple got another, common house – by right it belongs to an inheriting person. In disputes and unclear situations there is always checked from where the funds for the property bought were come.
Funds, possessed items and real estates are not the only things which are subject to division but there are also debts. Even after divorce for all backlog we are responsible together with ex-spouse. It need to be taken into account that mortgaging, responsibilities associated with common carried out undertaking and also one of the spouse’s debts taken with the consent of the other. However first of all a creditor will try to collect the debt form the personal property of debtor and hi/her involvement in old common property.
It is worth to remember that division of the common property by court is not for free. The relevant request is associated with payment of 1000 pln unless the spouses will attach to it adequate plan of common property division – then the fee is lower and its high is 300 pln. It is worth to have into account the court costs, costs of mediation, the salary of proficient, legal counsel or lawyer.