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Submitted by DakotaLegal on
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Submitted by DakotaLegal on
The explanations for (a) your mom’s attitude and (b) your Dad’s motivation will actually have something to do with how this settles. We’ll talk about the importance of how divorce rules calculate marital property, too…this is because we want to understand her possible legal argument for claiming half the value of the car. If you have concerns about affording a lawyer, try an income-based legal service…http://www.vlas.org/.
The Title Will Probably Tell…
To begin with, I’m suggesting you look at the title and see how the ownership was listed. (A) If it was only your father’s name on the title, that’s good: your mom was probably not a joint owner under Virginia law. http://www.dmv.state.va.us/webdoc/citizen /guide/guide_owner.asp. You get ownership from the titled owner or owners. (B) If both parents were on the title, and both your parents signed the title transfer to you, then there’s no legal argument your mom can probably use, except for a constructive trust or fraud.
(C) The real problem comes if both parents were on the title, and only your dad signed.
An important fact I can’t make an assumption about is the status of their divorce. In other words, had your parents been living together until the divorce? If on the other hand they have been separated for some time, this will help you in avoiding any problems regarding the car. You can see why, by looking at the differences between living apart, having a legal separation, and co-habiting at the time of filing a divorce. http://www. fairfaxcounty.gov/ofw /pdf/separation_divorce_handbook.pdf. A legal separation comes with an agreement between the spouses, along with separation of certain debts and assets. Ask you dad if there was a separation agreement, and (if so) when was it signed?
Your Dad’s Motivation
What’s interesting is that your father has some good defenses to having the vehicle claimed as a marital asset. This whole thing matters most of all to him, since the issue comes down to whether this is a marital asset. Since you father just recently transferred the title, it seems a safe assumption that he wants you to have the vehicle. As we’ll discuss in a moment (in taking about evidence), much of this will rest with what your father wants to do. The risk to your dad a possible argument that the car transfer was intended to remove a marital asset either “wastefully” or fraudulently: http://caselaw .findlaw.com/va-court-of-appeals/1138393.html.
Your Mom’s Argument
It’s even possible your father’s action may have infuriated your mother? She might view it as a matter of taking sides “against” her. These are hardly effective legally, in terms of making you lose the car.
Hopefully, your mom’s name was not on the title. If her name was on the title, the Commonwealth should not have issued a new title in your name. Only under that circumstance, is it possible your mother might successfully rescind the title transfer itself.
Virginia Marital Property Rules
The big question still remains what names were on the title. Remember, it gets complicated if both parents were on the title. Then, you might have to argue your mother knew of the transfer of the vehicle to you, and that it was intended as a gift. Here’s a case involving a transfer (of money) and deciding whether it was a gift or not. http://caselaw. findlaw.com/va-court-of-appeals/1503750.html.
Evidence To Help Your Claim
We’ll assume your parents were living together at the time of the filing of divorce. This means the timing of the transfer, according to you, occurred before the filing for divorce. Get records showing this fact, including both the notice of transfer and even any maintenance records during the past three years.
Realistically, you have a good position, because you probably now have the vehicle title. Obviously, if this is an expensive car, your mother may push the issue. But even then, it’s not likely she can force you to pay her or surrender the vehicle. Ultimately, her grievance is with the way your father conducted the deal.
It’s very possible the car title was not transferred in the last three years, because your insurance and title was being paid for. You also have to deal with why this happened. Did your mom know and approve of the arrangement? Had she talked about “your car” ? This gives an option to your dad, to prove the implied consent of your mother in paying these fees from a joint checking account. Alternatively, if your dad was the only title holder, and he paid all costs out of his own accounts, this tends to mean the vehicle was a properly transferred gift.
The explanations for (a) your mom’s attitude and (b) your Dad’s motivation will actually have something to do with how this settles. We’ll talk about the importance of how divorce rules calculate marital property, too…this is because we want to understand her possible legal argument for claiming half the value of the car. If you have concerns about affording a lawyer, try an income-based legal service…http://www.vlas.org/.
The Title Will Probably Tell…
To begin with, I’m suggesting you look at the title and see how the ownership was listed. (A) If it was only your father’s name on the title, that’s good: your mom was probably not a joint owner under Virginia law. http://www.dmv.state.va.us/webdoc/citizen /guide/guide_owner.asp. You get ownership from the titled owner or owners. (B) If both parents were on the title, and both your parents signed the title transfer to you, then there’s no legal argument your mom can probably use, except for a constructive trust or fraud.
(C) The real problem comes if both parents were on the title, and only your dad signed.
An important fact I can’t make an assumption about is the status of their divorce. In other words, had your parents been living together until the divorce? If on the other hand they have been separated for some time, this will help you in avoiding any problems regarding the car. You can see why, by looking at the differences between living apart, having a legal separation, and co-habiting at the time of filing a divorce. http://www. fairfaxcounty.gov/ofw /pdf/separation_divorce_handbook.pdf. A legal separation comes with an agreement between the spouses, along with separation of certain debts and assets. Ask you dad if there was a separation agreement, and (if so) when was it signed?
Your Dad’s Motivation
What’s interesting is that your father has some good defenses to having the vehicle claimed as a marital asset. This whole thing matters most of all to him, since the issue comes down to whether this is a marital asset. Since you father just recently transferred the title, it seems a safe assumption that he wants you to have the vehicle. As we’ll discuss in a moment (in taking about evidence), much of this will rest with what your father wants to do. The risk to your dad a possible argument that the car transfer was intended to remove a marital asset either “wastefully” or fraudulently: http://caselaw .findlaw.com/va-court-of-appeals/1138393.html.
Your Mom’s Argument
It’s even possible your father’s action may have infuriated your mother? She might view it as a matter of taking sides “against” her. These are hardly effective legally, in terms of making you lose the car.
Hopefully, your mom’s name was not on the title. If her name was on the title, the Commonwealth should not have issued a new title in your name. Only under that circumstance, is it possible your mother might successfully rescind the title transfer itself.
Virginia Marital Property Rules
The big question still remains what names were on the title. Remember, it gets complicated if both parents were on the title. Then, you might have to argue your mother knew of the transfer of the vehicle to you, and that it was intended as a gift. Here’s a case involving a transfer (of money) and deciding whether it was a gift or not. http://caselaw. findlaw.com/va-court-of-appeals/1503750.html.
Evidence To Help Your Claim
We’ll assume your parents were living together at the time of the filing of divorce. This means the timing of the transfer, according to you, occurred before the filing for divorce. Get records showing this fact, including both the notice of transfer and even any maintenance records during the past three years.
Realistically, you have a good position, because you probably now have the vehicle title. Obviously, if this is an expensive car, your mother may push the issue. But even then, it’s not likely she can force you to pay her or surrender the vehicle. Ultimately, her grievance is with the way your father conducted the deal.
It’s very possible the car title was not transferred in the last three years, because your insurance and title was being paid for. You also have to deal with why this happened. Did your mom know and approve of the arrangement? Had she talked about “your car” ? This gives an option to your dad, to prove the implied consent of your mother in paying these fees from a joint checking account. Alternatively, if your dad was the only title holder, and he paid all costs out of his own accounts, this tends to mean the vehicle was a properly transferred gift.