Thailand Divorce Cases - Getting More With Less Key to a Fair Division of Marital Assets

Marriage is a special union of two individuals' legal, social and spiritual life. It can almost entirely merge everything you have as an individual- your finances specifically, to the assets of your spouse. It may be true that all is fair in love but once divorce sets in, nothing would seem fair any more. Actions for divorce are emotionally-charged, thus the need to come up with guidelines on how spouses getting a divorce in Thailand can satisfactorily and fairly divide their assets between them.

It is of course best if the spouses could sit down and talk about which will go to whom. But as this is seldom the case, there is a need for the following guidelines:

The moment you get the idea that a divorce proceeding will ensue, make a list of all your marital assets. In Thai law, MARITAL ASSETS or "conjugal property" includes everything that the spouses acquired during the course of the marriage. Excepted herein are inherited properties and gifts or donations given specifically to one spouse.

Family homes are not necessarily marital assets. This is a common misconception. The determination of whether a property should form part of the conjugal property is largely dependent on the source of funds. A family home can be an inherited property and thus exempted from the conjugal assets.

In coming up with a list, one may include vacation houses, condominiums, vehicles, bank accounts, securities owned, collectibles, household items, appliances and furniture, electronic gadgets, retirement plans, insurances and family businesses. When in doubt whether such property is conjugal or not, do not hesitate to include it in the list. In approving a settlement, it is the duty of the courts to determine this and to exclude separate properties while upholding the valid ones.

Note that foreigners marrying Thai nationals cannot own land in Thailand. In case of divorce, regardless of source of funds, the land automatically goes to the Thai spouse.

It is also advisable to keep a record of transactions involving your properties like receipts, deeds of sale, mortgages, bank books, etc. These will be very useful in determining the source of funds and consequently the nature of the property.

This is also the perfect time to discover secreted assets. Even before the onset of the divorce proceedings, there may be undisclosed bank accounts, secretly transferred funds, safety deposit boxes and documents may have been falsified-all towards the end of manipulating the marital assets to have more than one's fair share.

For interracial marriages, it is imperative to have knowledge of the kind of property regime espoused by your own country and how it coincides with the family law of Thailand. Your Thailand lawyer can help you in this aspect.

Finally, since divorce proceedings, especially contested ones can be very technical and the parties inept to make guided decisions, it is necessary to have a trustworthy and efficient Thailand divorce lawyer. Generally, when dealing with rather sensitive family matters, your lawyer must be someone you can be comfortable sharing your story with. He or she must be able swing through the emotional whirlwind while maintaining your defense.

Remember that settlements, once approved by the Thailand court, are difficult if not entirely impossible to undo absent proof of vitiations of consent or newly discovered facts. These are done deals, so to speak. All these taken together will save you a lot of time and anguish in the Thai divorce process. You do not want to wallow in self-pity and come out single and broken-hearted. Come alive. Be vigilant.