Sinclair & Collins, LLC

Attorneys at Law

Phone:    (864) 573-7575 ext. 6

Fax:        (864) 585-0183

Email:      office@dmcjr.com

Physical Address:   302 East St. John Street
                             Spartanburg, SC 29302

Mailing Address:     P.O. Box 1853
                              Spartanburg, SC 29304

What property can a South Carolina Court divide?


South Carolina Family Courts can divide any property that a married couple got while they were married and that they still owned when one of them filed for divorce. There are some exceptions to this rule, but you need to discuss your situation with your lawyer to know if any exceptions applies to you.


Is there property the Family Court cannot divide?


Sometimes a spouse will own property a Family Court cannot divide. In some cases, a spouse may be able to protect gifts from the spouse that were given before the marriage, property owned by one spouse before the marriage,, property inherited by one spouse during the marriage, and gifts from a third party to one spouse during the marriage.


Can a South Carolina Family Court divide our retirement accounts?


Nay increase in the value of your retirement account during the time you were married can be divided by a Family Court.


How does a South Carolina Family Court divide property owned by divorcing spouses?


Dividing the Spouses= property is a four step process: (1) the Family Court first must identify all of the Amarital property@, (2) The Family Court must decide the value of each property, (3) the Family Court must decide what percentage of the property each spouse will receive, and (4) the Family Court must decide what pieces of property to give each spouse to ensure they each get the correct percentage if the total value of the marital property.


How much of the property does each spouse typically get?


There are 15 factors that the Family Court considers in deciding what percentage of the marital property each party should get. Those 15 factors include such things as the length of the marriage, misconduct during the marriage by one or both spouses, the income of the spouses, their health, other property that they may own, and whether or not alimony was awarded. In long-term marriages, each spouse often receives 50 percent of the marital property, but that percentage can be adjusted based on the other factors which the Family Court considers.