Opinion ID: 1576431
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Whether the chancellor erred in ordering the division of the GGC account balance as of April 1, 2009.

Text: ¶ 19. The rapid decline in the account balance following the divorce makes the date of valuation of the account extremely important. By choosing the date of valuation, for equitable distribution purposes, the court decides whether any appreciation or depreciation of the asset after the cutoff date should inure to the benefit (or detriment) of one party or both parties. ¶ 20. We have held that, [w]hen equitably dividing marital property upon divorce, the date of valuation is necessarily within the discretion of the chancellor. Hensarling v. Hensarling, 824 So.2d 583, 591 (Miss.2002) (citing MacDonald v. MacDonald, 698 So.2d 1079, 1086 (Miss.1997)). And the chancellor's discretion in the area of equitable distribution is exceedingly broad and he `has the flexibility to do what equity and justice requires.' Id. at 590 (quoting Chamblee v. Chamblee, 637 So.2d 850, 864 (Miss. 1994)). Therefore, the chancellor enjoys broad discretion to value property as of any date that, in the chancellor's view, equity and justice may require. ¶ 21. We cannot say that the chancellor abused her discretion in valuing the GGC account as of April 1, 2009. The chancellor concluded that Kelly was not at fault for not transferring Melissa's share of the account as of the date of divorce because Melissa had not sufficiently proven that she had provided Kelly with the appropriate account information to effect the transfer until sometime in early 2009. Additionally, the chancellor found that it would be patently unfair for only one party to bear the loss in the account's value caused by the global economic crisis and the attendant stock market decline. The chancellor did not reach these conclusions until after the March 2009 hearing. Thus, the chancellor's decision to value the account as of April 1, 2009, was reasonable and was founded upon concerns for justice and equity. Therefore, we affirm the chancellor's application of the aforementioned percentages to the value of the GGC account as of April 1, 2009.