New Jersey Divorce Property Division

What the Law Says

New Jersey courts divide marital property under an equitable distribution standard — the judge decides what's fair, which may or may not be 50/50.

New Jersey divides marital property equitably under N.J. Stat. §2A:34-23.1, one of the most comprehensive factor lists in the country (sixteen factors, (a)-(p)), and the statute applies equally to marriages and civil unions. It creates a rebuttable presumption that each party made a substantial financial or nonfinancial contribution to the acquisition of income and property while the parties were married or in the civil union, and it requires the court to make specific findings of fact on the eligibility of each asset for distribution, its value, and how it is distributed. There is no presumption of an equal split.

Division Factors (N.J. Stat. §2A:34-23.1)

What New Jersey courts weigh:

1. Duration of the marriage or civil union (N.J. Stat. §2A:34-23.1(a))
2. Age and physical and emotional health of the parties (§2A:34-23.1(b))
3. Income or property brought to the marriage or civil union by each party (§2A:34-23.1(c))
4. Standard of living established during the marriage or civil union (§2A:34-23.1(d))
5. Any written agreement made by the parties before or during the marriage or civil union concerning an arrangement of property distribution (§2A:34-23.1(e))
6. Economic circumstances of each party at the time the division of property becomes effective (§2A:34-23.1(f))
7. Income and earning capacity of each party, including educational background, training, employment skills, work experience, length of absence from the job market, custodial responsibilities for children, and the time and expense necessary to acquire sufficient education or training to become self-supporting at a standard of living reasonably comparable to that enjoyed during the marriage or civil union (§2A:34-23.1(g))
8. Contribution by each party to the education, training or earning power of the other (§2A:34-23.1(h))
9. Contribution of each party to the acquisition, dissipation, preservation, depreciation or appreciation in the amount or value of the marital property, or the property acquired during the civil union, as well as the contribution of a party as a homemaker (§2A:34-23.1(i))
10. Tax consequences of the proposed distribution to each party (§2A:34-23.1(j))
11. Present value of the property (§2A:34-23.1(k))
12. Need of a parent who has physical custody of a child to own or occupy the marital residence or residence shared by the partners in a civil union couple, and to use or own the household effects (§2A:34-23.1(l))
13. Debts and liabilities of the parties (§2A:34-23.1(m))
14. Need for creation, now or in the future, of a trust fund to secure reasonably foreseeable medical or educational costs for a spouse, partner in a civil union couple, or children (§2A:34-23.1(n))
15. Extent to which a party deferred achieving their career goals (§2A:34-23.1(o))
16. Any other factors which the court may deem relevant (§2A:34-23.1(p))

Common Questions