Property Division

In Michigan property division normally is a 50/50 proposition.  However, there are numerous legal factors where one party may be awarded a much greater portion of the property than the other as follows:

Length of Marriage
One factor is the length of the marriage.  In the case of a short-term marriage (a few years or less), the court will normally restore whatever property each party brought into the marriage.  Any property jointly purchased or acquired during the marriage would be divided equally.  In cases of very short-term marriages, wedding gifts would be awarded to the party whose family gifted them. 

PreMarital Property
Even in cases of long-term marriages, the property that one party brought into the marriage may be returned to such party as “premarital property”.  In Michigan if one party owned an asset prior to the marriage and did not manage or commingle or add the spouse’s name, then it is generally returned (awarded) to the originating party.

Fault
Although Michigan is a “no-fault” divorce state, nevertheless, the court looks to the fault of the parties in dividing marital property.  This normally involves cases of extramarital relationships,  waste or gambling away of marital money, criminal activities or domestic violence.  General incompatibility, even if it rises to the level of arguing and hurt feelings, does not qualify.  Even with proof of fault as mentioned, Michigan courts do not stray from the 50/50 standard greater than a 60/40 split. 

Needs
If the result of a 50/50 property division would be inadequate to meet the needs of a party, the court is authorized to award the needy party a greater portion of property to prevent injustice or an unfair result.