Property division and the Pitt-Jolie divorce
North Carolina residents who are following the divorce of Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt have likely heard that Jolie is asking for full physical custody of their children. Pitt may end up paying child support if she does get sole custody, but if he fights for joint custody and the children live with each of them half the time, then neither will owe child support to the other. The two have been together since 2004 and married since 2014, and they have six children.
In California, where Jolie has filed for divorce, marital property is supposed to be split equally. However, many people believe that the two have a prenuptial agreement. Since 2004, they have earned $555 million between the two of them. Since they married, Pitt has earned about $76.5 million and Jolie has earned around $41 million.
The two also purchased homes in New Orleans and France before they got married. These will not be considered marital property and may need to be dealt with separately.
Although North Carolina is not a community property state, property division is still a major element of divorce, and there are several ways that a couple can go about it. For example, a couple does not automatically have to turn to litigation and have a judge decide how the property is divided. They can work with their lawyers to negotiate an agreement that they are both happy with. This may involve splitting all of the shared property 50/50, one of them buying out the other, or one taking certain assets, such as real estate, while the other takes certain accounts or other investments. The couple may be happier with this more flexible approach.