[karrared]

Hi. To make a long story short I have been married for seven years, live in CA, have 2 kids and have been heading towards a divorce for most of the seven years now. We have talked about it but are still living unhappily together and nothing has been done formally. My husbands grandmother just passed away leaving him $300,000 (we haven't received it yet). I recently overheard him having a sneaky phone conversation with one of his buddies at work talking about a big secret plan to "invest" the money when he gets it.
My question is - is there anything legally I can do to make him unable to blow this money? Am I entitled to any of it? Our kids? Please help.

[fredg]

Hi,
Just so you know where I'm "coming from", I was divorced after 7 yrs of marriage with 2 children, paid child support for many years, but remarried after 2 yrs after the Divorce, and am now 64 yrs old, been married for 29 yrs.
Have you and your husband considered seeing, together, a Professional Marriage Counselor? Just a thought.
To answer your question about all the money; in most states, half of everything he receives is yours. If you think your marriage is "on the rocks" and you want out of it, then please get a lawyer. He/she can advise you on what to do. If this money is in a Trust Fund with his name only, then it's his. If it's cash, then half is yours.
Talk with a lawyer, in any case, and get some Professional advice. I do wish you the very best of luck.

[box440]

The advice you received is false. You are entitled to half of the increase in value of property from the time he gets it. If he puts the money in a jointly owned property such as your house it becomes marital property. If he keeps it separate it is all his.

[CaptainForest]

I agree with box440.

Here in Ontario, inheritance is not given to the other spouse.

If and when my grandmother dies, she will leave her estate to my father. My mother has no legal claim on the estate itself as that is a personal asset of my father's.

[Fr_Chuck]

Ok everyone is answering like you are in a divorce, you said you are not at this time.

No as long as you are married, and the money is "both" of yours, he can spend, waste, gamble, hire hookers or anything else he wants to do with the money that is in your joint checking, his checking or hiden under the mattress.

So you will need to file for divorce, your attorney will demand that he provide information on all of his assets.

California is a community property state ( beats me why all the stars want to live there, it kills them on divorce settlements)

But unless you want to divorce him, there is little you can do to stop him from spending money the way he wants to.

[wynelle]

When I divorced in California, my attorney said (and his concurred) that inherited assets are exempt from the "community property" portion of our estate. Same thought process applied when I had to refile in Virginia.

If he keeps this inherited in a separate account, or places it into a trust, you can't touch it. You can have your attorney (should you divorce) try to make your husband agree to settle a certain amount on the children.

But as you said in a different post, your husband hasn't received the money, plus his side of the family doesn't like you. In fact, having not seen the executor's report of the estate and assets, you can't be sure that there was $300,000 available in the estate after the estate bills have been paid and other primary beneficiaries have been pad.

If he does receive the inheritance, then he has the "right" to invest it as he would like to, although providng for his children should be highest on his priorities. Note the emphasis on children, not on ex-to-be-spouse.