South Carolina

JURISDICTIONAL END OF MARRIAGE DATE: Date of Filing Complaint for divorce. If there is no Complaint Date use current date.

STATE TYPE FOR PENSION EVALUATION: South Carolina is an "equitable distribution" state. South Carolina is an equitable distribution state. This means that the court will divide the marital property between the parties as it deems equitable and just, after setting aside to each spouse the separate property of each. Some of the factors the court considers in dividing the property between the parties include:

1. The duration of the marriage. 2. The age of the spouses. 3. Marital misconduct. 4. Economic misconduct. 5. The value of each party's marital property. 6. The contribution of each spouse to the marital estate. 7. The income of each spouse.

[Code of Laws of South Carolina; Chapter 3, Sections 20-7-472 and 20-7-473].

S.C. CODE ANN. § 20-7-471

Acquisition during marriage of special equity and ownership right in marital property.

During the marriage a spouse shall acquire, based upon the factors set out in § 20-7-472, a vested special equity and ownership right in the marital property as defined in § 20-7-473, which equity and ownership right are subject to apportionment between the spouses by the family courts of this State at the time marital litigation is filed or commenced as provided in § 20-7-472.

S.C. CODE ANN. § 20-7-472

Equitable apportionment of marital property; criteria; finality of order.

In a proceeding for divorce a vinculo matrimonii or separate support and maintenance, or in a proceeding for disposition of property following a prior decree of dissolution of a marriage by a court which lacked personal jurisdiction over an absent spouse or which lacked jurisdiction to dispose of the property, and in other marital litigation between the parties, the court shall make a final equitable apportionment between the parties of the parties' marital property upon request by either party in the pleadings.

In making apportionment, the court must give weight in such proportion as it finds appropriate to all of the following factors:

(1) the duration of the marriage together with the ages of the parties at the time of the marriage and at the time of the divorce or separate maintenance or other marital action between the parties;

(2) marital misconduct or fault of either or both parties, whether or not used as a basis for a divorce as such, if the misconduct affects or has affected the economic circumstances of the parties, or contributed to the breakup of the marriage; provided, that no evidence of personal conduct which would otherwise be relevant and material for purposes of this subsection shall be considered with regard to this subsection if such conduct shall have taken place subsequent to the happening of the earliest of (a) entry of a pendente lite order in a divorce or separate maintenance action; (b) formal signing of a written property or marital settlement agreement; or (c) entry of a permanent order of separate maintenance and support or of a permanent order approving a property or marital settlement agreement between the parties;

(3) the value of the marital property, whether the property be within or without the State. The contribution of each spouse to the acquisition, preservation, depreciation, or appreciation in value of the marital property, including the contribution of the spouse as homemaker; provided, that the court shall consider the quality of the contribution as well as its factual existence;

(4) the income of each spouse, the earning potential of each spouse, and the opportunity for future acquisition of capital assets;

(5) the health, both physical and emotional, of each spouse;

(6) the need of each spouse or either spouse for additional training or education in order to achieve that spouses's income potential;

(7) the nonmarital property of each spouse;

(8) the existence or nonexistence of vested retirement benefits for each or either spouse;

(9) whether separate maintenance or alimony has been awarded;

(10) the desirability of awarding the family home as part of equitable distribution or the right to live therein for reasonable periods to the spouse having custody of any children;

(11) the tax consequences to each or either party as a result of any particular form of equitable apportionment;

(12) the existence and extent of any support obligations, from a prior marriage or for any other reason or reasons, of either party;

(13) liens and any other encumbrances upon the marital property, which themselves must be equitably divided, or upon the separate property of either of the parties, and any other existing debts incurred by the parties or either of them during the course of the marriage;

(14) child custody arrangements and obligations at the time of the entry of the order; and

(15) such other relevant factors as the trial court shall expressly enumerate in its order.

The court's order as it affects distribution of marital property shall be a final order not subject to modification except by appeal or remand following proper appeal.

S.C. CODE ANN. § 20-7-473

Marital and nonmarital property; nonmarital property as not subject to judicial apportionment.

The term "marital property" as used in this article means all real and personal property which has been acquired by the parties during the marriage and which is owned as of the date of filing or commencement of marital litigation as provided in § 20-7-472 regardless of how legal title is held, except the following, which constitute nonmarital property:

(1) property acquired by either party by inheritance, devise, bequest, or gift from a party other than the spouse;

(2) property acquired by either party before the marriage and property acquired after the happening of the earliest of (a) entry of a pendente lite order in a divorce or separate maintenance action; (b) formal signing of a written property or marital settlement agreement; or (c) entry of a permanent order of separate maintenance and support or of a permanent order approving a property or marital settlement agreement between the parties;

(3) property acquired by either party in exchange for property described in items (1) and (2) of this section;

(4) property excluded by written contract of the parties. "Written contract" includes any antenuptial agreement of the parties which must be considered presumptively fair and equitable so long as it was voluntarily executed with both parties separately represented by counsel and pursuant to the full financial disclosure to each other that is mandated by the rules of the family court as to income, debts, and assets;

(5) any increase in value in nonmarital property, except to the extent that the increase resulted directly or indirectly from efforts of the other spouse during marriage.

Interspousal gifts of property, including gifts of property from one spouse to the other made indirectly by way of a third party, are marital property which is subject to division.

The court does not have jurisdiction or authority to apportion nonmarital property.

S.C. CODE ANN. § 20-7-474

Determination of value of contributions.

In determining the value of contributions prior to making an equitable apportionment, the court:

(1) shall make findings of fact from credible evidence of the values of property and services, if any;

(2) is empowered to take judicial notice of official reports of the federal and state governments, including official bulletins, publications, and reports of general public interest where these reports are made and published by authority of law or have been adopted by state statute;

(3) has the authority to appoint experts as necessary for the purpose of valuation of property and contributions and to assess the cost against any or all parties to the action.

S.C. CODE ANN. § 20-7-475

Sequestration of party's property; disposition of sequestered property.

(1) At any stage of a proceeding under this article where it appears to the court that personal jurisdiction may not be obtained over an absent party or where a party refuses to comply with an order of the court, the court may, upon appropriate petition, order the sequestration of that party's real and personal property which is within this State. The court may also appoint a sequestrator and, by injunction or otherwise, authorize the sequestrator to take the property into possession and control. In the case of an absent party, the court may appoint the party residing in this State as sequestator.

(2) The property sequestered and the income from it may be applied in whole or in part, at the direction of the court and as justice may require, so as to achieve an equitable apportionment of property as set forth in this article.

(3) Additionally, the court, in its discretion, if the property and income from it which may be sequestered is insufficient to pay what is required, may, upon terms and conditions as it considers in the interests of justice, direct the mortgaging of or the public or private sale of a sufficient amount of the sequestered property to pay what is required.

(4) The family court in which the action is filed has jurisdiction and venue to sequester property located within this State.

(5) The remedies in this section are cumulative to all other remedies which may be available to the parties.

S.C. CODE ANN. § 20-7-476

Orders to sell property or to execute and deliver deed, bill of sale, etc.; utilization of monetary awards and other means to achieve equity.

The court may direct a party to execute and deliver any deed, bill of sale, note, mortgage, or other document necessary to carry out its order of equitable apportionment. If a party so directed fails to comply, the court may direct the clerk of court in the county in which the property involved is situate to execute and deliver the document, and this performance by the clerk is as effective as the performance of the party would have been. The court in making an equitable apportionment may order the public or private sale of all or any portion of the marital property upon terms it determines.

The court may utilize any other reasonable means to achieve equity between the parties, which means are subject to and may not be inconsistent with the other provisions of this article and may include making a monetary award to achieve an equitable apportionment. Any monetary award made does not constitute a payment which is treated as ordinary income to the recipient under either the provisions of Chapter 7 of Title 12 or, to the extent lawful, under the United States Internal Revenue Code.

S.C. CODE ANN. § 20-7-477

Notice of pendency of proceedings; effect on spousal and third-party property rights; issuance and recordation of transcript of judgment.

In a proceeding under this article, either party may record a notice of the pendency of proceedings in the manner provided in civil actions generally, which has the same effect as a notice in civil actions. The rights and interests of each spouse in the other's property created by this article are not effective against third parties (I) with regard to any parcel of real property in which an interest under this article is claimed until a Notice of Pendency of Action is filed as provided in § 15-11-10 with the clerk of court of the county in which such parcel of real property is situated and (2) with regard to personal property, until the third party has received written notice from either spouse in a proceeding under this article that marital litigation has been filed. Prior rights and interests of third parties (1) in real property are not affected by filing a Notice of Pendency of Action and (2) in personal property are not affected by receipt of written notice of such a filing.

Upon entry of judgment against a party requiring payment of money or transfer of property, whether by interlocutory order or final decree, a party may apply to the court for issuance of a transcript of judgment in the form prescribed in Section 20-7-478. This transcript may be recorded in the office of the clerk of court of common pleas and indexed in the books of abstracts of judgments of any county of this State as provided by law.

After the order or decree has been duly recorded and indexed in the office of the clerk of court of common pleas, the order or decree has all force and effect of judgments of the courts of common pleas as provided by law, the recording and indexing constituting record notice to all persons of the order or decree recorded and indexed.

The recordation and filing of a transcript of judgment does not prevent the court from exercising any equitable or other presently existing power of enforcement of the order or decree which is within its jurisdiction.

The statutory lien created by Section 20-3-145 is not effective as against third parties unless this section has been complied with.

(4) The family court in which the action is filed has jurisdiction and venue to sequester property located within this State.

(5) The remedies in this section are cumulative to all other remedies which may be available to the parties.

S.C. CODE ANN. § 20-7-478

Form of transcript of judgment.

A transcript of judgment may be substantially in the following form:

STATE OF SOUTH CAROLINA COUNTY OF______________________ IN THE FAMILY COURT ______________________, Petitioner,

vs.

______________________, TRANSCRIPT OF JUDGMENT Respondent.

NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that in the above-captioned proceeding, (family court docket # of proceeding or domestic judgment #), filed in the family court of the State and county aforesaid, judgment was entered against _________, the ________ in the action, on the ____ day of ___, 19__, [in the amount of ________, as and by reason of (an award of attorney's fees, equitable division of property, etc.)] OR (requiring conveyance to ________ of the real property described as following:) Attorneys of record are ________, representing the petitioner and _______, representing the respondent.

FURTHER NOTICE IS GIVEN that interest will accrue at the statutory rate from the ___ day of _____ 19__., together with costs in the amount of ___________.

___________________________Judge of the Family Court

place _______

date _________

S.C. CODE ANN. § 20-7-479

Subject matter jurisdiction of family courts with respect to contracts relating to property.

The family courts of this State have subject matter jurisdiction over all contracts relating to property which is involved in a proceeding under this article and over the construction and enforcement of those contracts.

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South Carolina