Orange County Divorce: How to handle an Omitted Asset?

Ever wonder what would happen if two spouses finalized their divorce, signed the final Judgment papers and discovered that they failed to adjudicate a retirement account? This is an example of an omitted asset. Pursuant to California Family Code Section 2556, it provides, in pertinent part as follows: "In a proceeding for dissolution of marriage, … the court has continuing jurisdiction to award community estate assets or community estate liabilities to the parties that have not been previously adjudicated by a judgment in the proceeding. A party may file a post judgment motion or order to show cause in the proceeding in order to obtain adjudication of any community estate asset or liability omitted or not adjudicated by the judgment." Hence, if you are a party just finalized your divorce and subsequently discovered that you should have received your one-half community property share in an omitted asset, such as a retirement account, your recourse is to seek immediate court intervention by filing an Order to Show Cause to determine the disposition of said omitted asset. You will eventually receive your one-half community interest in said omitted asset. In an effort to minimize the frequency of dealing with omitted asset issues, it is required that both parties in a divorce file their respective Preliminary Declarations of Disclosure so that all assets and debts are disclosed to their spouse prior to finalization of a divorce. For more information on filing for divorce in Orange County or Los Angeles County, contact an aggressive Orange County divorce lawyer for more information.

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