In Delaware, the court generally accepts a fair and reasonable property division the parties agree to, but if the parties cannot agree, the Family Court divides the property within the Judgment of Divorce.

Delaware is an equitable distribution state. It uses the dual classification model, and the appreciation of separate property is separate. Equitable does not mean equal, or even half, but rather what the Family Court considers fair.

The Delaware property division law insures an equitable distribution to each spouse. When the parties are unable to reach a settlement, the Family Court does it for them after considering a number of factors. Delaware marital property is divided under the considerations of 13 Del. C. Section 1513(a) but the court enjoys latitude when dividing property. Equitable distribution means that property the spouses acquired before a marriage usually is not subject to distribution. The only property that comes into the court's distribution is that which is legally classified as property of the marriage under 13 Del. C. Section1513(b).

In dividing marital property the court considers all relevant factors including:

Marital misconduct is not a factor in the distribution of marital property.

The terms and conditions of property division are in the Delaware Code - Title 13 - Chapters: 1504, 1513.

Delaware marital property includes assets acquired during a marriage as well as separate items that are brought into a marriage and converted into marital property. Under 13 Del. C. Section 1513(c), the court presumes that all property acquired during a marriage is marital property regardless of title, whether individual or joint.

Property is separate if one spouse owned it before marriage or acquired it during marriage by inheritance or gift. Gifts from one spouse to the other are marital. The spouse who claims sole ownership must produce proof of sole title and sole maintenance, such as a gift tax return or a notarized document executed before, or at the same time as, the transfer. Separate property also includes items purchased with or exchanged for property one spouse acquired before marriage. Appreciation remains separate. A couple may use a prenuptial agreement to exclude property from equitable distribution.

Marital and separate property can become commingled – mixed together. Some couples combine their separate assets intentionally; sometimes it happens because of simply not paying attention. A premarital bank account owned by the husband can become marital property if the wife makes deposits to it, or a house owned by one partner alone can become partially marital property if both spouses pay the mortgage and other expenses.

When the spouses cannot unravel commingled property, the court decides who should receive how much, but these problems can become tricky.

Non-marital property is property that each spouse had before the marriage as well as property exempt under 13 Del. C. Section 1513(b).

Property is either marital or separate, but property in a divorce means “all property acquired by either party subsequent to the marriage except” exempted property, which is separate. Some financial assets, such as retirement accounts, can be very difficult to evaluate and require the assistance of a financial professional, such as a CPA or an actuary.

First, the court goes through a discovery process classifying property, separate or marital, and placing a value on all property and debt. Finally, it distributes the marital assets between the two parties in an equitable fashion.

Spouses can divide assets by assigning certain items to each spouse, possibly with an equalizing payment if one spouse gets substantially more than the other, or by selling property and dividing the proceeds. They can also agree to continue to own property together. While many people aren't thrilled about this, as it requires an ongoing relationship related to something other than the kids, some couples agree to keep the family home until children are out of school. Others may keep investment property hoping it will increase in value.

The couple - or the court - must also assign all debt accrued during the marriage, including mortgages, car loans and credit card debts, to one of the spouses.

Spouses can:

In Delaware, vested pensions are marital property. A pension vests when all the requirements to receive the pension have been met. Unvested pensions are also marital property. Until the pension has vested, the person under whom the pension is maintained has only an expectancy of interest in the pension. 


Several different methods of valuation are used in determining how much a marital asset is worth, depending upon the asset to be valued and the level of agreement between the parties. Courts generally accept the value when the spouses mutually agree on a value of a particular asset. Experts may be retained by the parties or by the courts to determine the value of marital assets if the parties cannot agree. Such experts may include accountants, real estate or business appraisers, or pension valuators. The use of experts adds to the cost of the divorce.