Legal Question in Family Law in New York

Re: Equitable Distribution

Your wife does NOT have any right to any of the properties, given the information you have described. Under the Domestic Relations Law, those properties are "premarital" and your wife would have had to contribute to the value of the properties in some way in order to establish a claim against those properties. The fact that your marriage was of a short duration, only four years, it is not likely that she would be able to establish any firm ground to make a claim against those properties. YOU MAY HAVE A CLAIM AGAINST HER PROPERTY IN TAIWAN IF YOU WERE MAKING THE MORTGAGE PAYMENTS!!

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Re: Equitable Distribution

Given the facts as you have stated, none of your properties would go to your wife in equitable distribution. However, if the facts are not as simple as you have set forth, then your wife might end up with some claim to your properties, perhaps a portion of the appreciation in value accrued during the course of your marriage on either or both properties.

The following is a general discussion and you

are advised to consult with an attorney and at that time provide all the details of your circumstances.

There are at least two issues here: Since you purchased both of the properties before the marriage, that makes them "separate property" as defined in Section 236 of New York State's Domestic Relations Law and "separate property" is not subject to equitable distribution.

However, any part of the increase in value that accrued to each of the properties during the course of your marriage, which was directly or indirectly attributable to your wife, e.g., her activities as homemaker could be subject to equitable distribution, but only if the increased value of the properties was to any extent attributable to your own active efforts ("actively appreciating property").

However, if your properties purchased in 1998 and 1988 appreciated in value solely due to market conditions or inflation ("passively appreciating property"), then your wife would generally not have a claim to your property under equitable distribution, unless there was a written agreement between your wife and yourself made before or during the marriage which provided for equitable distribution of either or both of your properties in the event of divorce. Such an agreement would have to be a written agreement and would have to be "acknowledged or proven in the manner required to entitle a deed to be recorded."