If my husband divorces me, can he take my car if he holds the title?
Full Question:
Answer:
California’s system for dividing a married couple’s property in
the event of a divorce is referred to as a “community property” system.
This means that during a divorce proceeding, California courts will
divide the “community” property of the parties equally after setting
aside to each spouse that spouse's separate property. Community
property is presumed to be all property or income acquired by the
parties during the marriage and held in joint form. This presumption
may be rebutted by a clear statement in the title to the property that
the property is separate and not community property or by a written
agreement that the property is separate property. Thus, everything a
husband and wife acquire once they are married is owned equally
(fifty-fifty) by both of them, regardless of who provided the money to
purchase the asset or whose name the asset is held in, with the
exception of inheritances, specific gifts to one of the spouses, and
property and profits clearly traceable to property owned before
marriage, all of which is considered separate property. Generally,
separate property acquired before the marriage or by gift or inheritance
during the marriage may be excluded from the marital estate if neither
the property nor its income has been used for the common benefit of the
parties during their marriage. If the parties occasionally use an item
of separate property for the benefit of both parties, the property may
be subject to division. Where the parties regularly use property
acquired by one party before marriage for the common benefit of the
parties, it is more likely to be available for consideration in dividing
property. The frequency of use may be considered by the court in making
the decision. By agreement or action the married couple can turn
separate property into community property, including by commingling
community and separate funds in one account.
Community property also recognizes the equal contribution of both
parties to the marriage even though one or the other may earn more
income through employment.