California Family Code § 1101: Breach of Fiduciary Duty Between Spouses

Plain-Language Summary

California Family Code § 1101 allows one spouse to sue the other for violating fiduciary duties involving community property. These duties include full disclosure, honesty, and fair dealing. If a spouse hides, misuses, or improperly transfers community property without consent, the other can seek legal remedies — including monetary awards, reallocation of assets, or full ownership of the wrongfully handled property. Section 1101 applies during marriage, separation, and even after a spouse’s death. The law protects each spouse’s equal interest in marital property and ensures that neither takes unfair advantage of the other.

Real-World Examples

• Hidden assets: A spouse wins a lottery but does not disclose it during divorce. The court can award 100% of the hidden asset to the innocent spouse, as a penalty for breach of fiduciary duty.
• Unauthorized transfers: One spouse deeds a jointly owned house to a third party without consent. The harmed spouse may bring a § 1101 claim to unwind the transaction and recover their interest.
• Wasting community assets: A spouse spends large amounts of community funds on gambling or an extramarital affair. The court can reimburse the other spouse for their share of the loss.
• Nondisclosure in divorce: A spouse fails to list a business account in the divorce disclosures. The court may reopen the case and award a monetary remedy under § 1101(g) or (h).
• Claims after death: Even if a spouse dies, the surviving spouse may bring a § 1101 claim against the decedent’s estate for breaches that impaired their share of the community property.

Published Case Law on § 1101

• In re Marriage of Rossi (2001) 90 Cal.App.4th 34 – Wife concealed $1.3 million in lottery winnings during divorce. The court awarded the entire amount to the husband under § 1101(h), finding her conduct fraudulent and oppressive.
• Yeh v. Tai (2017) 18 Cal.App.5th 953 – The court clarified that § 1101(d)’s three-year limitations period, not the one-year probate statute, governs claims for breach of fiduciary duty brought after a spouse’s death.
• In re Marriage of Brewer & Federici (2001) 93 Cal.App.4th 1334 – A divorce settlement was set aside due to failure to disclose a pension. The nondisclosure violated § 1101 fiduciary duties, warranting reallocation of the asset.
• In re Marriage of Schleich (2017) 8 Cal.App.5th 267 – Court ruled that § 1101 does not apply to separate property or pre-separation actions that did not affect the community estate, narrowing the scope of the statute’s remedies.
• In re Marriage of DeBenedetti (2023) 93 Cal.App.5th 122 – A monetary award under § 1101(g) was treated as a property right enforceable by QDRO against a retirement plan, confirming the enforceability of fiduciary-duty remedies in property division.

Full Text of California Family Code § 1101

(a) A spouse has a claim against the other spouse for any breach of the fiduciary duty that results in impairment to the claimant spouse’s present undivided one-half interest in the community estate, including, but not limited to, a single transaction or a pattern or series of transactions, which transaction or transactions have caused or result in the impairment of the claimant spouse’s interest in the community estate.

(b) A court may order an accounting of the property and obligations of the parties to a marriage and may determine the rights of ownership in, or the division of, the property.

(c) A court may order that the name of a spouse be added to community property held in the name of the other spouse alone, and may reform title to reflect the community character of the property, unless to do so would violate the rights of a third party who relied in good faith and for value on record title.

(d) (1) Except as provided in paragraph (2), any action under subdivision (a) shall be commenced within three years after the date the complaining spouse had actual knowledge of the transaction or event that gave rise to the claim.

(2) An action may be commenced under this section upon the death of a spouse or in conjunction with an action for legal separation, dissolution, or nullity, without regard to the time limits otherwise imposed by paragraph (1).

(3) The defense of laches may be raised in any action brought under this section.

(4) The remedies provided in subdivision (a) apply only to transactions or events occurring on or after July 1, 1987, except those occurring prior to that date for which a court order was entered on or after July 1, 1987.

(e) In any transaction described in subdivision (a), in which the consent of the spouse adversely affected was required by statute, the court may dispense with the requirement of consent if the spouse whose consent was required refused to give consent, or could not give consent due to incapacity, and the transaction was in the best interest of the community.

(f) Any action may be brought under this section without filing an action for legal separation or dissolution of marriage, and the remedies shall include, but not be limited to, an award to the claimant spouse of 50 percent, or an amount equal to 50 percent, of any asset undisclosed or transferred in breach of the fiduciary duty plus attorney’s fees and court costs. The value of the asset shall be determined to be