Protecting Children’s Economic Interests in the Post-Divorce Division of Marital Property: A Best-Interests Framework

This doctrinal article examines children’s economic protection when joint marital assets are divided following divorce. It distinguishes the former spouses’ ownership interests from child-maintenance duties and the child’s need for stable accommodation. Through statutory and conceptual analysis and qualified discussion of judicial materials, the article identifies a specific protective avenue in Supreme Court Circular No. 1 of 2022: a marital-property claim may be granted while implementation of division is deferred where the sole family home occupied by the child is proven, until the child turns twenty-one or marries. It proposes a proportionate, evidence-based assessment while rejecting the unsupported premise that children automatically receive an ownership share in the parents’ joint property.