Opinion ID: 1754908
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Use of the term marital property

Text: Both Glenn and Richards complain about the use of the term marital property in jury questions one, three, four, five, and six. The general instructions that preceded the charge defined separate and community property. Question number one asked, Did Glenn Vickery breach his fiduciary duty to Helen Vickery concerning the division of the marital property of Helen Vickery and Glenn Vickery? Question three asked, Did Dianne Richards breach her fiduciary duty to Helen Vickery while representing Helen Vickery in the divorce and marital property division between Helen Vickery and Glenn Vickery? Question four asked if Glenn committed fraud against Helen in the division of the couple's marital property. Question five asked if the division of the couple's marital property was the result of extrinsic fraud by Glenn, unmixed with any negligence on Helen's part. Question six, a damage question predicated on the answers to questions one and four, asked what sum of money would compensate Helen for her damages caused by the fraud or breach of fiduciary duty of Glenn concerning the division of the marital property of the couple. Question 6A, a damage question identical to question six, related to Richards. The instructions to all these questions defined marital property as all the community and separate property owned by either or both spouses as of November 22, 1991. Richards and Glenn argue that the trial court erred in using the phrase marital property because it allowed the jury to take into consideration Glenn's separate property as well as the couple's community property. Glenn states, The term `marital property' as used in the charge skewed the property the jury could consider and ultimately affected the judgment. Any error in the use of the term marital property was harmless. The judgment does not award Helen the damages found by the jury for loss of marital property. With respect to Glenn, the trial court made its own division of property; [10] with respect to Richards, the trial court awarded Helen only the damages for mental anguish, and not the damages found by the jury for loss of marital property.