Someone loses, someone finds: what is important to do between marriages — experts say

Divide and conquer

First of all, of course, it is necessary to resolve all property and monetary issues with the ex-spouse. A good tool for this is an agreement on the division of jointly acquired property. It can be issued both before and after a divorce. In Russia, the number of such agreements in the first half of 2024 increased by 5% and exceeded 11.8 thousand. Among the leaders: Moscow, Moscow region, St. Petersburg, Krasnodar Territory and Sverdlovsk Region. If we evaluate not absolute figures, but growth dynamics, the most active increases were shown by Karachay-Cherkessia (2.4 times), Magadan region (2.3 times) and Kamchatka (+71%).

If the spouses did not have a prenuptial agreement, then everything they acquired during marriage is joint property and is divided in half upon divorce. Even if the couple decided everything calmly upon separation, it is better to register the agreements with a notary.

Let’s imagine the situation. People agreed that to whomever the property is registered, it remains to him. For example, a man gets a dacha and a car, and his ex-wife gets an apartment. Time passes, both find their other halves and go with them to the registry office. A woman lives in the apartment left over from her first marriage with her new husband, he invests in good repairs, children appear… And a few years later, creditors of her ex-husband appear on the doorstep, who has fallen under bankruptcy proceedings. In this case, the apartment may go into bankruptcy estate, and after its sale the woman will receive monetary compensation only for her share. If the property had been registered in time in the division agreement, such an unpleasant situation might not have happened.

In addition, if the property ownership regime is not changed and the woman decides to sell it, the consent of her ex will be required. After all, the property only in words belongs to her, but according to the law it is still common.

A common situation in notarial practice: ex-spouses divide real estate and one acquires the share of the other. If you buy this share while already in your next marriage, you will need the consent of your new significant other. The money you spend on this is considered common, and the property is acquired as joint property. Relationships in such “triangles” are different. Former and new wives may, to put it mildly, dislike each other.

Real case: in the Leningrad region, a man went to a notary for consultations, alternately with his ex and his current wife. He wanted to buy out his ex-wife’s share in their common property. At the same time, the new wife gave money for the purchase. The man simultaneously entered into a marriage contract with her in order to distribute the property in proportion to everyone’s expenses. Thus, the share of the first wife in fact passed not to the man, but to his second wife.

It happens that separation agreements, on the contrary, bring women closer together. So, two ex-wives of the same man turned to a Moscow notary. Both were very offended by him. Against this background, the ladies became friends and came together for advice on how to properly divide property with their common ex-husband.

Battles of prenuptial agreements and wills

A convenient tool for resolving property issues within a family is a prenuptial agreement. In the first half of the year, Russians entered into more than 50 thousand marriage contracts, which is comparable to the figure for the first half of 2023. The top 5 regions by the number of such documents included Moscow, St. Petersburg, Moscow Region, Krasnodar Territory and Tatarstan.

Often people who entered into a prenuptial agreement in their first marriage come for the same document with their next spouses. By the way, the new husband or wife does not always know that the other half already had a stamp in their passport. The notary observes notarial secrecy and will not just talk about it. However, there are situations when you have to show your cards.

So, when a couple distributes property through a marriage contract, the notary must verify that it belongs to the parties. If he discovers that the property is in the common joint ownership of the former spouses, the notary will not certify the marriage contract. At the same time, he will have to inform the applicants about the reasons for the refusal.

This story happened, for example, in Surgut. The newlyweds came to conclude a marriage contract, the notary made a request to the registry office and saw that the man was remarried. Moreover, the apartment that he wanted to generously transfer to his wife was purchased during a previous relationship. Of course, there was no division of property with the ex-wife. The man shrugged, his other half was unpleasantly surprised.

Sometimes negative experiences in your first marriage help you sort out financial issues with your new partner or life partner. A case from the Moscow region: a man who went through a difficult divorce and division of property, a few years after that, decided to marry a second time. To eliminate possible disputes in the future, he suggested that the girl immediately conclude a marriage contract. She agreed, but during consultations with the notary, the bride and groom constantly argued over the terms of the document. In the end there was a big quarrel; Mendelssohn’s march never sounded for them. But after a while, the same man came with another chosen one. They agreed on everything without any problems and entered into a marriage contract. We got married and built a strong family with three children.

An important point, regardless of the presence or absence of new families, is resolving the issue of child support. There are situations when a man comes to a notary’s office with several ex-wives at once to certify alimony agreements for children from these marriages. In the Moscow region, a man brought eight ex-wives to the notary at once, with each of whom he had one or two children together. It is noteworthy that the women communicated well with each other, and those who did not know each other met in the office while certifying alimony agreements.

Separately, it is worth mentioning the topic of inheritance. As a general rule, ex-wives and husbands are not included in the list of heirs. Also, in the event of a divorce, the joint will of the spouses automatically ceases to be valid. However, a classic will written in favor of a partner remains in force even after the divorce. Unless, of course, it is revoked or a new will is written for another person, for example, for a new spouse. At the same time, we note that when certifying a will, in principle, it is not necessary to indicate family or marital relations; the text may simply contain a name.

Another nuance concerns couples who did not have a marriage contract ora, and during the divorce they did not enter into a separation agreement. After the death of one of these former spouses, the second may claim a share in the property that was acquired during their life together, but was registered in the name of the deceased. Thus, a stranger may appear in the life of the testator’s new family.

There are quite complex and at the same time funny situations. For example, when in the first marriage a house is bought on credit, in the second marriage the woman receives maternal capital and uses it to partially repay this mortgage, and with the third husband the debt is already completely covered. As a result, people try to determine which spouse deserves what share in this apartment. Everyone considers their contribution significant and the relationship has to be sorted out in court.

Before the next trip to the registry office, ex-spouses should also resolve the issue of common debts so that this does not affect property relations in the new marriage. It may also be useful to enter into an agreement on the place of residence and the order of raising common children. A new marriage of one of the former spouses can stir up old grievances and omissions. Sometimes this results in the parent with whom the child lives prohibiting him from communicating with the parent who has remarried.

It is worth noting that only mom and dad can be parties to such a “children’s” agreement. The new spouses of the parents, even if they communicate and spend a lot of time with the child of their chosen one, do not appear in such a document.

Source: website Federal Notary Chamber