Pamela Wynn, an attorney specializing in collaborative divorce, is guest blogging for us today. Thanks, Pamela!

Half of all marriages end in divorce these days. As your lemon lawsuit winds its way through the court system, life happens. If you end up in divorce court before your lawsuit is finished, you could have a contingent marital asset. How a lawsuit settlement is treated in your divorce case depends on the law of your state.

Marital assets are those that are obtained during marriage and are divided in divorce. Contingent assets are those assets that are likely to come into existence but are not certain yet. So, if your lawsuit is in progress at the time of the divorce, you will need to report the case as a contingent marital asset and ask the court to divide it.

In general, community property states will evenly divide the contingent asset. In equitable distribution states, treatment usually depends on what the award represents. If the judgment is for lost wages or past earning capacity, it will be considered a marital asset because it replaces marital earnings that would have been made during the marriage. If the judgment is simply a joint award to both of you and does not specify what the damages represent, the entire award will likely be marital property.

Even if the award is considered a marital asset, portions of it may be non-marital and not subject to division in a divorce. Compensation for future losses or pain and suffering typically belong only to one spouse and are treated as non-marital assets in a divorce. If the judgment awards each of you separate amounts, the separate amounts will be considered non-marital assets. Also, awards for future losses will be considered non-marital.

If you are involved in a lawsuit and a divorce, be sure you know what the award represents. How your state will treat the lawsuit proceeds in the divorce case may well depend on what the nature of the award is.

Pamela S. Wynn has practiced family law in Florida for more than 24 years and is President of Legal Education Center of Florida, Inc., home of the DIY Divorce system. For more information about Florida family law, visit http://diydivorcefl.com/