Can a wife expect a property to be split between partners if she cheated on her partner in the US (assuming no contract has been signed)?
Yes.
People who are not divorce lawyers think that courts really hate and really punish infidelity and adultery by making lop-sided property and/or alimony divisions in divorce.
They do not.
Sure, you may hear of the occasional outlier judge who does, but they are the exception that proves the rule.
The purpose of dividing marital property is to ensure a fair division between both spouses. An equal division is presumptively fair. While some acts or omissions of a spouse can result in a less than or greater than equal division of property, those instances are rare and infidelity is usually not one of the acts that will result in an unequal division of marital property or determine whether one gets or pays alimony.
While in many jurisdictions (including Utah, where I practice divorce and family law) a court can consider infidelity in awarding alimony, the purpose of alimony is not to punish. Instead, the purpose of alimony is to prevent an ex-spouse from becoming a welfare charge on the state. Alimony is thus primarily based upon need and ability to pay. Infidelity may result in a slightly greater alimony award or perhaps an award of slightly longer duration, but it usually won’t result in the innocent spouse being awarded the couple’s entire house or the like.
Utah Family Law, LC | divorceutah.com | 801-466-9277