Who Gets the Car in Your Divorce?

When you go through the divorce process, you will either handle asset distribution yourself during the negotiation process, or the court will do it for you. This includes any vehicles you own.

How do you determine who gets the car in your divorce? As with any other piece of property, judges will base their decision on what they believe to be most equitable. If you owned the vehicle prior to the marriage, then you will get to keep the vehicle without question. But if you purchased the vehicle with marital assets and both are legal owners of the vehicle, you’ll have to negotiate a buyout.

Asset distribution and vehicles

Obviously you can’t divide a single car. Therefore, you’ll need to determine the value of the vehicle, so you can determine how much equity you both have in the vehicle. If it’s a judge determining how to handle the asset, you should keep in mind that the equity split won’t necessarily be 50-50.

In considering how they will handle the vehicle, the judge will consider who needs it more, who is capable of buying out the other spouse and how other assets in the divorce are being divided.

In some cases, the name on the title can also be a factor in determining who will get ownership of the vehicle after a divorce. Title isn’t always enough, though, especially if the vehicle was purchased with marital funds.

If you’re interested in learning more about the factors that go into asset distribution in a divorce, contact an experienced Long Island divorce lawyer at Bryan L. Salamone & Associates.