Wait – I DON'T have to split that with my spouse?

When last we left Jed, the soon-to-be-divorced oil tycoon, he was lamenting the fact that he was going to have to share his vast and newfound oil wealth with his spouse, despite the fact that they had kept their finances separate.

During his second meeting with his attorney, Abe, he was telling Abe about all of the things that will have to be accounted for in the divorce. He told him about the houses, the vast oil wealth, the cars, and then he mentioned the considerable investment portfolio that he had inherited the prior year from his great uncle, Wiley Ebeneezer.

"What did you say? You have inherited property?"

"Why yes, Abe, I do. Why?"

"Well, the law in the State of Michigan is that gifted or inherited property is generally considered seperate property from that of the other spouse.  And did I mention I doubled my rate again?"

"Woo hoo!"

Yes, Jed, woo hoo indeed. Generally speaking, gifted or inherited property is the separate property of the spouse who received it, and is not subject to division if the parties divorce. However, if a spouse receives a gift of money or inheritance, and the spouse uses these funds for marital purposes, such as for joint vacations, home improvements, cars, or if the spouse mixes the money with other moneys or investments that are definitely marital in nature, then it is highly likely that the gifted or inherited property will lose its 'separateness,' if that's actually a word.

So, if you receive a gift or inheritance, and you want to keep it from your spouse when you divorce him or her, keep it separate in all ways. It might not please your spouse, but that's another issue...

See you again.