Divorce: Dividing Asset Appreciation, Proving and Valuing Passive vs. Active Efforts

This CLE course will address questions about distributing the appreciated value of assets in a divorce, property division, and best evidence strategies. The program will discuss how to assert a claim to the appreciation of separate assets, including burdens of proof for demonstrating passive and active appreciation.

When dividing assets equitably in a divorce, one issue that creates difficulties is property appreciation—any appreciation that may have accrued during the marriage or while the divorce is pending.

The title to the asset does not control who is entitled to the appreciation. This determination depends on the asset's value at different times, when the increased value occurred, and why. Counsel must understand the difference between increases in value arising from passive and active efforts, direct and indirect efforts, and what some courts call tangential versus foundational contributions.

The party claiming appreciation usually bears the burden of proof to justify an award. Courts have developed various tests that the non-titled spouse must navigate to recover appreciated value, but the decisions are often unclear. Counsel should be familiar with the types of evidence needed.

Listen as this experienced panel of family lawyers reviews the recurring issues and best strategies for ascertaining, valuing, and equitably dividing property appreciation in a divorce.