My team fields the, “Is divorce 50/50 in Oregon” question at least twice a day.
The answer is more complicated than a yes or a no. Let’s dive into if divorce is 50/50 in Oregon.
Is Oregon a community property state?
Oregon is surrounded by Washington and California, which are community property states and, simplified, means they process a divorce 50/50. Oregon is not a community property state, but instead, is a common law property state. When it comes to divorce, we apply a principle of equitable distribution, which tends to mean 50/50 of the marital property, but, of course, exceptions exist. Let’s break it down.
What is marital property?
When dividing property in a divorce, we need to first determine what is marital property. Here is a simple formula that (mostly) determines marital property:
- If you brought it into the marriage and you didn’t put your spouse’s name on it, it is NOT marital property.
- If you purchased it during the marriage and it is in your separate name, then it IS marital property.
- If you inherited it during the marriage and you kept it in your separate name (i.e. you did not add your spouse’s name to it), then it is NOT marital property.
- If both of your names are on it, then it IS marital property.
Of course, exceptions exist, but on the whole, in Oregon we divide marital property 50/50 in a divorce.
What debts are marital?
Let’s turn our attention to debts. Is his gambling debt marital? Is the credit card debt she racked-up marital debt? Here is a simple formula that (mostly) determines marital debt:
- If you brought the debt into the marriage and you didn’t put your spouse’s name on it, it is NOT marital debt.
- If you incurred the debt during the marriage, it is in your separate name, and it is not attached to your business, then it IS marital debt.
- If you spent money during the marriage in a nefarious manner (gambling, porn, infidelity, etc.), then it is likely NOT marital, but it is up for negotiation.
- If both of your names are on it, then it IS marital debt.
Student loans can be... a mess!
Student loans are a bit of a pickle. There is not a statute that addresses student loans and the case law is not terribly helpful. Here is a simple formula that (mostly) determines student loans:
- If you both incurred the student loans prior to the marriage AND both loans were equally paid during the marriage, then they are NOT marital debt.
- If you both incurred the student loans prior to the marriage AND both loans were NOT equally paid during the marriage, then some MAY be marital debt
If you incurred the student loans during the marriage, then, it will be awarded to you. But are they marital debt? If the spouse who incurred the student loans during the marriage is also paying the other party spousal support, then the student loans MAY be marital debt.
If you are keeping score, marital property and marital debt are split 50/50 in a divorce in Oregon.
Is the business marital?
Finally, we need to analyze a business. Let’s presume that the business is a solely held business (i.e. no other owners).
- If the business was created or acquired during the marriage, then it IS marital.
- If the business was owned prior to the marriage, then it is NOT marital.
- If the business has both parties’ names on it, it IS marital.
If the business is marital, for the most part, the party who is the primary participant in the business will be awarded the business. The court will also award the business’ value to the awarded party, which means the non-awarded party is likely to receive 50% of the value.
The debt of the business goes with the business.
It needs to be noted that not all businesses have a value, but that topic is for another blog.
Now that we know what is and what is not marital, is Oregon 50/50 in a divorce?
Now that we have a base-line understanding of what is (and what is not) marital property and debt, it’s time to figure out if we divide 50/50 in a divorce in Oregon.
For the most part, in Oregon, we divide the marital property 50/50 and the marital debt 50/50 in a divorce. Oregon then awards the separate property and separate debt to the party who owns that property or debt. Then, we look at the overall awards and determine if the awards are equitable, which is just another word for fair.
Is there a quick formula to determine what is “equitable”? No… and this is the reason why there is so much litigation (well that… and spousal support).
Here’s my advice… the court isn’t going to entertain who paid for what or who spent what, unless it is a nefarious purchase (i.e. gambling, drugs, porn, purchases for an affair). If it’s marital, presume it is split 50/50 in your divorce in Oregon.
If you make peace with what is likely to happen, you can save yourself about 2/3rds the cost of hiring two attorneys by using divorce mediation.
