Your spouse failed you. Now, you find yourself worrying about something that you hadn’t thought about before: the possibility of your spouse stealing your inheritance in divorce. You would hate to see your parent’s assets end up in your spouse’s possession, but you must know that won’t happen as long as you did not mix your inherited assets with your marital ones.
Inheritance as separate property
Your loved one left you a share of their estate to provide you with financial security and protection after their death. They worked hard to acquire your share of the inheritance, and the last thing you want is your spouse to take it during the divorce. However, the courts in Virginia consider property and assets that come from inheritance as separate property, so your inheritance is not subject to distribution.
Although the courts consider inheritance money to be separate property at most times, there are some situations where this is not the case. Your spouse could have a right to a share of your inheritance if you ever comingled the inheritance assets with your marital ones. For example, if you deposited some of the inheritance money in your joint bank account.
Your lawful property and assets
You don’t have to split your inheritance with your spouse unless you mixed the inheritance assets with your marital ones. However, this does not mean that everything is lost if you did this by mistake. In that case, you can prevent giving some of your inheritance to your spouse by tracing it back with your financial documents. The inheritance is lawfully yours, and you have the right to fight for it in court.