What is joint property of spouses?
The joint property of the spouses is the property that the spouses acquired through work during the duration of the marital union. Work also includes the so-called indirect work that facilitates the other spouse’s earning, which would include taking care of children and the household, as well as work that maintains property. The shares of the spouses in the joint property are not determined. Neither spouse can sell real estate that represents joint property without express written consent, nor can it, e.g. burden with a mortgage. Even when only one spouse is registered as the owner of the real estate in the cadastre, if it is property acquired through work in marriage, it is considered that the registration was made in the name of both spouses, i.e. the real estate is in the joint property regime.
What is spousal separate property?
Separate property is the property that the spouse acquired before the marriage, or in other words the property that he “brought into the marriage”. This also includes property acquired during the marriage by inheritance or gift. The spouse who contributed to the increase in the value of the separate property of the other spouse has the right to a monetary claim or a share in that property, all in proportion to his contribution.
What does the division of joint assets of spouses mean?
The division of common property implies the determination of the co-ownership share in it. Undetermined shares become determined (eg 1/2 and 1/2). It can be performed during the marriage and after its termination. It can be consensual (before a public notary) and judicial.
What are the rules for judicial division of joint property?
It is based on the assumption that the shares of the spouses in the common property are equal. This presumption is rebuttable, that is, each of the spouses can prove that they are entitled to more than half. The court renders its decision based on the assessment of the spouse’s income, managing household affairs, taking care of children, taking care of property, and other circumstances of importance for maintaining or increasing the value of joint property. In the decision, the court takes into account which items are for the spouse’s personal use, which items are intended for the child, as well as which items are used for the trade or occupation of one spouse. The heirs of the deceased spouse, as well as the creditors of the spouse whose separate property could not settle their claims, have the right to demand division.
Danilo Babić- lawyer in Novi Sad
