Separate money mixed with marital money can end up marital in a Georgia divorce, and whether it does can be a question of fact.
Money That Passes Through a Joint Account
In Miller v. Miller, 288 Ga. 274 (2010), the husband said the couple’s home was bought with money from his premarital house. But that house had been deeded into both names, its sale proceeds “were deposited into the parties’ joint operating account and thereby commingled with the funds therein,” and the new home was deeded to both of them. The finding that the new home was marital stood.
In Walton v. Walton, 285 Ga. 706 (2009), the down payment came from a joint account and from shared money the husband had moved into his own account. “The transfer of the couple’s funds to Husband’s account did not make the funds Husband’s separate property.”
A Joint Account Is Not Always Decisive
In Bloomfield v. Bloomfield, 282 Ga. 108 (2007), a $10,000 gift from the wife’s father went into a joint account. The trial court found the husband would not let her hold her own account, and the Supreme Court upheld its ruling that the money stayed hers.
Money That Cannot Be Traced
In Highsmith v. Highsmith, 289 Ga. 841 (2011), the wife brought an investment account into the marriage and moved about $210,000 of it into a joint account to buy rental properties. Reversing the trial court, the Supreme Court held what remained in her own account was separate, because no marital money went into it and its value rose or fell with the market. But the source of funds rule could not be applied to the $210,000, because there was no evidence of how much marital money was in the joint account or how her money was spent over eighteen years. Instead, the trial court gave her the larger share of the marital estate, considering a proposed credit of up to $210,000, and the Supreme Court upheld that.
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This post is a quick overview of the law and is not intended as legal advice. Please feel free to contact our office for a consultation if you have questions about this or any other legal aspects regarding your case!