What Happens To Property Owned Before Marriage In Divorce?

What happens to property owned before marriage when you get divorced?

If a house owned by one person before the marriage was lived in as the marital home, this will usually be treated as a matrimonial asset and may be subject to division to achieve a fair settlement.

Most assets acquired or built up during a marriage are added to the ‘matrimonial pot’ – this is normally divided up equally (there is an assumption of a 50:50 split as the starting point) between the couple when they get divorced.

There are two types of assets – those acquired before marriage and those built up during marriage. The court will treat these assets differently so you need to learn the difference between matrimonial assets vs non-matrimonial assets.

Ultimately, the treatment of pre-marital property in a UK divorce can be complex and is subject to the discretion of the court, which will consider the entire financial situation of both parties before making a decision.

Is a house owned before marriage considered marital property?

Any non-matrimonial property, inherited assets, and other assets that were already owned by one party before the marriage are called pre-marital assets and are treated as distinct from joint finances for purposes of divorce; as such they will often not be counted as part of the matrimonial pot and may instead be retained in full by the relevant party.

The rationale behind this distinction was set out in the case of White v. White, in which the court acknowledged the view, widely but not universally held, that property owned by one spouse before the marriage, and inherited property whenever acquired, stand on a different footing from what may be loosely called matrimonial property.

But whether or not a court will decide to exclude property owned before marriage from the matrimonial pot depends on various case-specific facts, including:

• Passage of time – in a lengthy marriage, where either party owned property before getting married, this property may gradually come to be viewed as matrimonial property (Miller v. Miller), even if it is not used as the matrimonial home, especially if it is not kept separate (see ‘mingling of property’ below).
• Mingling of property – where a property was bought before marriage, it can end up being mingled with matrimonial property over time (eg if it is used as a family holiday home or income generated from it is used within the marriage). The more mingling that occurs (and the greater passage of time), the more likely that property owned before marriage will be added to the matrimonial pot for purposes of calculating a divorce settlement.

What happens to property owned before marriage?

If property owned before marriage is considered to be marital property (see above) it will be added to the matrimonial pot.

It will then be divided between the divorcing couple, according to the circumstances.

The starting point is generally a 50:50 split, but the court will consider section 25 of the Matrimonial Causes Act 1973 which sets out the various factors that should be taken into account when deciding how assets should be divided, for example:

• the welfare of any children under the age of 18 (this is the primary consideration);
• the income, earning capacity, property, and other financial resources that each of the parties to the marriage has or is likely to have in the foreseeable future;
• the financial needs, obligations and responsibilities that each of the parties to the marriage has or is likely to have in the foreseeable future;
• the standard of living enjoyed by the family before the breakdown of the marriage; and
• the age of each party to the marriage and the duration of the marriage.

Once the court has determined the weight of these factors, it will decide the split of the matrimonial pot.

Any property owned before marriage may need to be sold and the proceeds divided to ensure an equitable split.

Does my spouse have any rights to a property I owned before marriage?

While the divorce process is still ongoing, regardless of whether the property was bought before marriage spouses have ‘home rights’ in their shared matrimonial home – even if this consists of property that was owned by one party before the marriage.

Essentially, this means that both spouses have a right to live in the property until the divorce has been finalised and a court settlement has been agreed upon.

How can I protect any property owned before marriage?

Property owned before marriage can be protected to some extent by a prenuptial agreement (or prenup).

Prenups are basically contracts, entered into by a couple before they get married, which set out the intentions of how any assets should be divided in the event they get divorced.

A prenup can reduce the possibility of specified property (eg property owned before marriage) being added to the overall matrimonial pot, but it is not a guarantee.

It is also possible to obtain a postnuptial agreement – which is essentially the same as a prenup but is drawn up after marriage.

Should you obtain a Financial Consent Order?

Yes, although obtaining a financial consent order is not a legal requirement, it is certainly a vital requirement, especially when deciding how to split finances, property and other assets obtained during or before marriage.

If you do not, your ex-spouse can claim those assets years after your divorce.

Consent order service

We offer a choice of consent order services starting from just £499 including VAT for a fixed-fee clean break consent order.

This service is ideal for those who want to obtain a clean break consent order by filing it themselves with the courts. Our qualified divorce solicitors will draft your agreed financial settlement ready for you to file.