Legal Question in Family Law in Michigan

Gifts or Inheritance in Divorce Settlement

My husband has threatened divorce. My parents have, and are, putting money in a gift account for me to reduce the size of their estate upon their deaths. They have said they will continue to fund this account as long as I do not use it, and especially not to allow my husband to buy more ''toys'' (He tends to be a bit of a spendthrift). My husband does not know about this gift account. My husband and I both have careers, comparable earnings, and will have comparable retirement incomes, so we would probably just split everything 50/50. Our children are 18 and 17 years old, so child support would not be an issue. If my husband divorces me, would this gift account (essentially an early inheritance) be subject to the divorce settlement? If my parents died and we divorced after that, would the inheritance from my parents be subject to the divorce? My parents want to insure that I and their grandsons get the benefit of the estate they have built, and that I helped them build when I was younger. My husband has not contributed to their estate in any way. If the gift or the estate would be subject to a divorce settlement, is there anything I or my parents can do to protect them.


Asked on 6/17/04, 11:28 am

2 Answers from Attorneys
Blake Lipman Law Office of Blake P. Lipman

Re: Gifts or Inheritance in Divorce Settlement

A court may, and I stress "may," consider the gift or inheritence marital property subject to division in a divorce. The court considers numerous factors when making this determination, including, length of marriage and intent of donor. Your parents could put the gifts in trust. This might avoid division in a divorce. For more info. please contact my office at (248)851-3171.

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Answered on 6/17/04, 12:39 pm
William Stern William Stern, P.C.

Re: Gifts or Inheritance in Divorce Settlement

Your parents should put the money into a trust because what they are doing now could put it in jeopardy in the event of a divorce. If your parents are local, tell them to give me a call. You may want to talk to me, also about the divorce issues. William Stern at 248-353-9400

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Answered on 6/17/04, 12:57 pm


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