Trial court must include insurance company termination benefits, despite their speculative nature. Trial court can choose, per Bloomer, a method of valuation, but should not hold open division until termination. Prolonging asset division does not promote judicial administration and it is not in the parties’ best interests to drag out the divorce.
Trial court properly charged husband with value of bank account where he withdrew funds, claiming legitimate household purposes. Court found he had funds to cover these expenses and that wife had similar expenses.
Trial court properly delayed equalization payment from wife until after husband gets out of jail. Trial court also properly provided for a dollar-for-dollar offset of child support against property division payments.
Trial court properly found that wife’s student loans (much of which were premarital) were included in the marital estate. The marital estate includes all assets and debts acquired during or before marriage unless specifically exempted by statute.
The court did not have to consider the tax consequences of husband’s withdrawal from his IRA to make the equalization payment since it was anticipated that he would sell or refinance the homestead. Husband’s choice to raise funds through a method which resulted in a penalty is his erroneous exercise of discretion, not the court’s.
Trial court affirmed for providing husband with ten years, without interest, for paying wife for her interest in his employer’s stock where he could not sell or transfer the stock per the shareholder’s agreement. (Not published, but citeable)
Educational degree not a marital asset. Note: This case was under the old statute and was essentially overruled by Lundberg.
(1) Award of maintenance was proper to compensate spouse for support to get professional degree. (2) Maintenance does not have to be based solely on need.
Court should consider maintenance as compensation for supporting spouse getting professional degree.
Spouse who supports education of partner is entitled to share of increased earnings. Trial court has discretion to choose among several different approaches.