Opinion ID: 1119615
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Valuation of the F/V JANE B

Text: Jeff also disputes the court's valuation of the F/V JANE B. First, he challenges the court's rejection of the figure contained in the dissolution petition. In the alternative, he argues that the trial court should have accepted his testimony that the vessel was worth $15,000 rather than Shannon's testimony that its value was $10,000. These arguments are meritless. The court had three conflicting pieces of evidence before it regarding the value of the vessel. In their dissolution agreement, Jeff and Shannon stipulated that it was worth $20,000. At trial, both parties revised their estimates: Jeff testified that the vessel was worth $15,000 and Shannon that it was worth $10,000. The court ultimately valued this asset at $10,000 and awarded it to Shannon. Jeff maintains that the court should have accepted the previously stipulated value of the F/V JANE B as $20,000. But both Jeff and Shannon approached the court for valuation and distribution of all the assets jointly held in the dissolution decree. And since neither party believed $20,000 was a fair value at the time of trial, it would make little sense to require the court to accept that value. Jeff alternatively claims that the court should have accepted his testimony over Shannon's. The only evidence presented at trial of F/V JANE B's value was the testimony of the parties. Jeff testified that the boat was purchased for $20,000, that the couple had added improvements, and that he believed the vessel was now worth $15,000. Shannon testified that the boat was purchased for $14,000, had not been used in a decade, was in poor condition, and was worth only $10,000. Because it is within the province of the trial court to make factual determinations based on witness credibility, [13] Jeff has failed to show that the trial court's valuation of the F/V JANE B was clearly erroneous.