2.1. Please describe the general principles: Which goods are part of community property? Which goods are part of the separate estates of the spouses?

Property acquired by the spouses after the commencement of their marriage shall be part of their community property, as well as, among others, the income and fruits collected from the personal property of a spouse or the income from work or intellectual activities collected after the commencement of the marriage.

The personal property of each spouse shall consist of:

• property acquired separately by each spouse before the commencement of the marriage;
• property acquired by succession or gift during the marriage unless the will or donation agreement indicates that the property shall be part of the community property;
• a spouse’s personal effects (clothing, assets required for the spouse’s profession);
• the rights to intellectual or industrial property except for the income derived from those rights;
• funds and chattels required for the personal business of one of the spouses other than the funds and chattels used in the business conducted jointly by both spouses;
• damages and compensation payments received by one of the spouses for non-pecuniary damage or personal injury, payments as financial aid for specific purposes and other benefits related specifically to only one of the spouses, rights that may not be transferred;
• property acquired with the personal funds or proceeds from the sale of a personal property with the express intention of the spouse at the time of the acquisition to acquire it as a personal property (Art. 3.89(1) of the CC).

2.2. Are there legal assumptions concerning the attribution of property?

All property shall be presumed to be community property unless it is established that it is the personal property of one spouse alone (Art. 3.88(2) of the CC).

2.3. Should the spouses establish an inventory of assets? If so, when and how?

The spouses are under no obligation to establish an inventory of assets.

2.4. Who is in charge of the administration of the property? Who is entitled to dispose of the property? May one spouse dispose of/administer the property alone or is the consent of the other spouse necessary (e.g. in cases of disposal of the spouses’ home)? What effect does the missing consent have on the validity of a legal transaction and on opposability towards a third party?

Community property shall be used, managed and disposed of by the mutual agreement of the spouses (Art. 3.92(1) of the CC). When concluding transactions a spouse shall be presumed to have the consent of the other spouse except in cases where entering into a transaction requires the written consent of the other spouse (Art. 3.92(3) of the CC). Transactions related to the disposal or encumbrance of a community immovable property or the rights to it, also transactions on the alienation of a community enterprise or securities or the encumbrance of the rights to them may be made only by both spouses except where one of the spouses has been given power of attorney by the other spouse to enter into such a transaction (Art. 3.92(4) of the CC).

Where a transaction has been concluded without the consent of the other spouse, that other spouse may ratify the transaction within a month of the date when he/she learnt about the transaction (Art. 3.92(6) of the CC). Transactions made without the consent of the other spouse and not ratified by him/her later, may be contested in an action brought by that spouse within a year of the date when he/she learnt about the transaction provided it is proven that the other party to the transaction was in bad faith (Art. 3.96(1) of the CC). Transactions that should have been made with the written consent of the other spouse or could only have been made jointly by both spouses may be declared void irrespective of the other party to the transaction being in good or bad faith except in cases where one or both of the spouses used fraud in making the transaction or made misrepresentations to institutions in charge of public registers or to any other institutions or officials. In such cases the transaction may be declared void only if the other party to the transaction was in bad faith (Art. 3.96(2) of the CC).

2.5. Are any legal transactions made by one spouse also binding on the other?

When making transactions a spouse shall be presumed to have the consent of the other spouse except in cases where entering into a transaction requires the written consent of the other spouse (Art. 3.92(3) of the CC).

2.6. Who is liable for debts incurred during the marriage? Which property may be used by creditors to satisfy their claims?

The following obligations shall be discharged from the community property of spouses:

• obligations related to the encumbrances of property acquired in co-ownership that existed at the time of acquisition or were created later;
• obligations related to the costs of managing community property;
• obligations related to the maintenance of the household;
• obligations related to legal expenses where the action is related to community property or the interests of the family;
• obligations arising from transactions made by one of the spouses with the consent of the other spouse or ratified by the latter subsequently as well as obligations arising from transactions for which no consent of the other spouse was required provided that the transactions were made in the interests of the family (Art. 3.109(1) of the CC).

Where the community property is not sufficient to satisfy the creditors' claims for which the spouses are jointly and severally liable, the claims are discharged from the personal property of the spouses (Art. 3.113 of the CC). 

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