When you get divorced, you will undergo a division of marital property. Marital property includes any part of your retirement accounts accumulated during the marriage. Florida is an equitable property state, so the court can decide how the retirement assets will be allocated among each spouse based on various factors, including:
The economic status of each spouse
One consideration a court gives in determining the division of retirement accounts is the financial status of each party. Suppose one party has an advantage for future earnings or other nonmarital assets. In that case, the judge may give greater than 50% of the retirement account portion of the marital estate to the disadvantaged spouse.
Duration of the marriage
How long the marriage has lasted is another factor the court looks at. If the marriage has lasted for the duration of the spouse’s careers, the court is more likely to split the retirement between both spouses, rather than disadvantaging one party over the other.
Debts and obligations of the spouses
In determining an equitable distribution of retirement accounts, a judge will also review the debts and obligations of each spouse. Some debts may be joint or marital, but some may be in one spouse’s name.
Assets added to the marriage
The court also looks at the assets contributed to the marriage by each spouse. This includes earned income and nonmarital assets.
Florida favors an even split of assets during a divorce when possible. However, the court must decide that the division of retirement accounts is equitable to both parties.
