How does the judge determine how the property is to be divided?
A dissolution court begins by giving each party their own nonmarital assets, if any. The remaining marital assets are divided between the parties “in such proportions as the court deems just,” after considering the five factors listed in Section 452.330, R.S.Mo. These factors include: • The economic circumstances of the parties at the time of the divorce, including the desirability of letting the spouse who has custody of any children live in the family home • What each party has contributed in acquiring the property, “including the contributions of a spouse as homemaker” • The value of the nonmarital property each spouse has received • The conduct of the parties during the marriage, and • The custody arrangements for the children When the parties and their attorneys attempt to negotiate and settle property division issues, they often start from the assumption that the marital property should be divided more or less equally between the parties. However, when these issues are left up to
