Pets are a hot button in divorce.
There are two questions about your pet that are relevant to your divorce in
Minnesota: (1) who will be awarded the pet? And (2) what is the value for the
pet that should be placed on the marital balance sheet?
The value of your pet is not the
cost that paid to adopt him or her. It is the value that you could get on the
open market. Your pet is an asset in the eyes of Minnesota law.
That doesn’t mean that your pet
doesn’t have sentimental value to you. In fact, it is not so easy to answer the
question who should be awarded the pet. The Court will likely consider the
effect that separation will have on any children involved in the case. The
Court may also consider the fact that many pets do not move well. More likely,
the Court will refuse to deal with the issue at all, or will deal with it in a
very dismissive way that will not make you feel heard.
As my Divorce Lawyer
advice to clients is to consider whether their pet will be well cared for in
their spouse’s home. If so, I suggest that there is no way of guaranteeing a
desired result, and that you almost always pay a premium for emotional
attachment (or blackmail). The thing about pets is that they live with us for a
limited time, and when they are gone, we’ll never forget them, but we may very
well welcome a new pet into our lives.
About Author
Jennifer graduated from the University
of Minnesota cum laude with a bachelor’s degree in speech communications. In
2006, Jennifer achieved her life’s dream; owning her own family Law MN practice. She practices
every day as Divorce
Attorney MN with the intention of representing her clients’ future.
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