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Is Arizona a 50 50 State in a Divorce | Hildebrand Law, PC

Is Arizona a 50 50 State in a Divorce

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Circumstances When Arizona is a 50/50 State in a Divorce

Many people ask is Arizona a 50 50 state in a divorce.

A judge in Arizona is required to fairly and equitably divide the parties’ property and debts in an Arizona divorce or legal separation.

The terms “fair” and “equitable” has been defined to mean substantially equal. This would tend to suggest that Arizona is a 50/50 state in a divorce.

A judge, therefore, must make a division of assets and debts that are substantially equal.

However, there are Court of Appeals decisions that have supported an unequal division of property in an Arizona divorce or legal separation case.

However, a judge must provide a reason for an unequal division of property if the inequality is significant.

Some Situations Where Arizona is not a 50/50 State in a Divorce

There are some situation in a divorce where it is fair and equitable not to equally divided assets and/or debts equally in a divorce in Arizona

Specifically, the court may find it is more fair and equitable to award one spouse more of the assets or more of the debts.

These cases typically occur when the court concludes a spouse has committed a waste of community assets, has intentionally destroyed community property, or is hiding community assets.

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Waste of Community Assets Provides a Basis for Arizona Not to be a 50/50 State in a Divorce

A judge may order an unequal division of property if the court determines one of the spouses has wasted community assets during the marriage.

In Arizona, both spouses have a fiduciary relationship with each other.

A fiduciary relationship requires both spouses to manage the community finances in a way that benefits the community.

Any waste of community assets, such as one spouse squandering substantial amounts of money on gambling and other addictions, could be found by a judge to be a violation of his or her fiduciary duty to the other spouse.

In such cases, the court could award the other spouse more community assets to make up for that waste of community money.

Concealment or Destruction of Community Assets Provides a Basis for Arizona Not to be a 50/50 State in a Divorce

Is Arizona a 50 50 State in a Divorce?

A judge may also award an unequal division of property if one spouse hides community assets. If the concealed assets are discovered, the court could award the other spouse as much as 100% of the concealed assets.

Likewise, if a spouse destroys community assets a judge could award the other spouse more than 50% of the remaining community assets to the other spouse.

It is fairly rare, however, that a judge will not divide property 50 50 between spouses in Arizona.

If you need information about if Arizona is a 50 50 state, you should seriously consider contacting the attorneys at Hildebrand Law, PC. Our Arizona community property attorneys have decades of combined experience successfully representing clients in divorce cases in Arizona.

Our family law firm has earned numerous awards such as US News and World Reports Best Arizona Family Law Firm, US News and World Report Best Divorce Attorneys, “Best of the Valley” by Arizona Foothills readers, and “Best Arizona Divorce Law Firms” by North Scottsdale Magazine.

Call us today at (480)305-8300 or reach out to us through our appointment scheduling form to schedule your personalized consultation and turn your Arizona community property case around today.

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