Legal Separation
Legal separation is not necessarily permanent. Separated spouses can agree at any point to undo the legal separation and resume their married life together. Conversely, one spouse might decide to convert the separation into a dissolution of marriage–a divorce.
Annulment
Protecting Your Rights in Your Legal Separation or Divorce
Division of Marital Property
In a divorce in Missouri, marital property is subject to what the law calls, “equitable distribution.” This means that all marital property (property acquired during your marriage) must be divided in such a way as to promote a fair (though not necessarily equal) allocation. Property ownership is not solely determined by how the property is titled. The court will look at other factors such as how and when the property was acquired and the source of funds used to acquire the property. Non-marital property, i.e. property received through gift, inheritance or due to a prenuptial agreement is “set aside” to its owner.