Equitable Distribution
The marital property system used in the 41 non-community-property US states (plus DC). Marital property is divided "fairly" — not necessarily equally — at divorce.
"Equitable" does not mean "equal." Courts in equitable-distribution states weigh many factors when dividing marital property at divorce: each spouse's income, contributions to the marriage (including non-financial contributions like child-rearing), length of the marriage, age and health of each spouse, and dozens of others. The outcome in any specific case is much less predictable than community-property division.
This unpredictability is one reason high-asset couples in equitable-distribution states sign prenups: the agreement replaces the open-ended judicial discretion with specific contract terms.
Related terms
- Community Property — A marital property system used in 9 US states under which property and earnings acquired during marriage are jointly owned and divided equally on divorce, absent a prenup.
- Marital Property — Property acquired by either spouse during the marriage, subject to division at divorce — either equally (in community-property states) or equitably (in the rest).
- Separate Property — Property owned by one spouse individually — typically property owned before the marriage, plus gifts and inheritances received during the marriage.
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