Arizona law requires the “equitable” division of marital property and marital debts during a divorce. Generally this is intended to be an “equal” division, though there are some cases in which an equal division may not be a fair (or equitable) division.
Specifically, Arizona statute provides that the Court may consider “excessive or abnormal expenditures and the destruction, concealment, or fraudulent disposition of property.” A.R.S. § 25-318(C). Additionally, the Courts may properly consider “other factors that bear on the equities of a case.” Inboden.
For example, the Courts may consider the “length of the marriage; the contributions of each spouse to the community, financial or otherwise; the source of funds used to acquire the property to be divided; the allocation of debt; as well as any other factor that may affect the outcome.” Inboden.
Courts are trained to equally divide property in each case, as this is what occurs most frequently. Accordingly, if you believe that it would be fair that you receive a larger share of the marital property to make the division a fair division, you will need experienced legal counsel to present your case and convince the Court that your case is unusual and deserving of a different outcome than the cookie-cutter divorce that the Courts are accustomed to.
Please feel free to contact McGuire Gardner today to speak with an experienced family law attorney about your unique case.