Case Update (2020): Mbatha v. Cutting; Choice of Law for the division of marital property
The case of Mbatha v. Cutting reads like a law school version of Cliff's Notes, summarizing the potential choice of law options for the equitable distribution of Mr. Mbatha and Ms. Cutting's marital assets in a Georgia divorce proceeding. The couple met while Ms. Cutting was on a trip to South Africa, where Mr. Mbatha resides. They married quite quickly in New York, where Ms. Cutting lived and worked, and, while on their honeymoon in Europe, things began to sour and they ultimately separated shortly thereafter. Ms. Cutting, while pregnant with their child, left South Africa and moved to her parents' house in Georgia. A divorce action was initiated. The key focus of the Court of Appeals matter related to which law applies when defining marital assets and deciding how to divide them between the spouses. During the parties' trial, the Wife argued South African law should apply to the property division (as the parties' only marital domicile and beca...