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Division of Premarital Assets in Divorce

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  • 08-29-2015, 11:42 AM
    awche88
    Division of Premarital Assets in Divorce
    My question involves a marriage in the state of: California and Colorado

    State: California and Colorado

    This question is regards to splitting premartial assets. My friend won a small lottery jackpot (2.1 million) when he was young - when he was only 31 years old. He chose to take out a 30-year annuity payment ($70,00/year for the next 30 years). He married his wife a few years later when he was 35 years old. Now at 42 years old, his wife and him are divorcing after 7 years of marriage - primarily because the wife had an affair with another person. Prior to the marriage, my friend wrote an informal written agreement that in the event there is a divorce, both the wife and him agreed that the wife would not be entitled to any of the lottery winnings and the annuity payments for present and future. My friend has kept that lottery money separate from his accounts he shared with his wife so there's no co-mingling of finances. It is also under his name only.

    As part of dividing assets in either California or Colorado, is the wife entitled to any sums of that lottery winnings in spite of an informal premarriage agreement in current and future annuity payments? I was told in his lottery bank account, he has saved up between $250,000 and $350,000 that includes interests and other types of investments. Are future annuity payments from the lottery payable to the wife after the divorce? And can the wife collect on 2.1 million jackpot?
  • 08-29-2015, 01:29 PM
    llworking
    Re: Divorce
    Quote:

    Quoting awche88
    View Post
    My question involves a marriage in the state of: California and Colorado

    State: California and Colorado

    This question is regards to splitting premartial assets. My friend won a small lottery jackpot (2.1 million) when he was young - when he was only 31 years old. He chose to take out a 30-year annuity payment ($70,00/year for the next 30 years). He married his wife a few years later when he was 35 years old. Now at 42 years old, his wife and him are divorcing after 7 years of marriage - primarily because the wife had an affair with another person. Prior to the marriage, my friend wrote an informal written agreement that in the event there is a divorce, both the wife and him agreed that the wife would not be entitled to any of the lottery winnings and the annuity payments for present and future. My friend has kept that lottery money separate from his accounts he shared with his wife so there's no co-mingling of finances. It is also under his name only.

    As part of dividing assets in either California or Colorado, is the wife entitled to any sums of that lottery winnings in spite of an informal premarriage agreement in current and future annuity payments? I was told in his lottery bank account, he has saved up between $250,000 and $350,000 that includes interests and other types of investments. Are future annuity payments from the lottery payable to the wife after the divorce? And can the wife collect on 2.1 million jackpot?

    I do not believe that she would be entitled to any of his annuity payments going forward. However, the money that he saved from his annuity payments, during the marriage, might be considered to be marital property. Its a bit tricky. It may even be possible that the principal of the annuity payment is separate property but the interest earned might be marital property.

    Your friend definitely needs to consult with an attorney. With that amount of money at state, he cannot afford not to do so.
  • 08-29-2015, 05:03 PM
    Dogmatique
    Re: Divorce
    I can't imagine why he hasn't called an attorney himself.

    Using a free message forum with potentially millions of dollars in question... is just insane.
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