My business is worth more than $20 million. Is my spouse entitled to a share of it?

California is a community-property state. If a business was started during the marriage, the business is community property, and basically, each spouse owns half of it. If the business was started before the marriage, there still may be some community-property interest in the business. The court has to determine the marital value; this is not fair-market value. An expert appraiser is appointed to determine the marital value and the community-property interest in the business. Each spouse has input with the expert appraiser.

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