Opinion ID: 2520463
Heading Depth: 4
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Mining equipment

Text: A number of pieces of equipment from the family's gold mining endeavors are also in dispute. The superior court found that the family's interest in the mine itself did not have any value at the time of the trial, but that some of the equipment left at the mine did have value. The superior court categorized these pieces of equipment as marital property and awarded them to Ernest. Ernest contests the trial court's categorization of the properties as marital. The superior court's determination that the mining equipment was marital property is supported by its finding that Judy raised the children while Ernest worked and that she sometimes assisted with the gold mine. The superior court wrote, Judy was a superb mother. She raised the children. She did not work outside the home, although she provided some assistance to the men working at the gold mine when she and the children were on the site. The superior court concluded that Ernest's interest in the mining operation itself was a marital asset. Although the trial court's findings regarding the mining equipment were succinct, the trial court's determination regarding the mine itself supports its conclusion that the mining equipment was a marital asset as well. More importantly, the superior court heard extensive and sometimes conflicting testimony about when and how the equipment was acquired, but Ernest does not claim that he bought any of the property prior to 1986. Therefore, the superior court properly deemed it marital under the pre-marital cohabitation standard set forth in Murray and Faulkner. Each piece of mining equipment is discussed briefly below.
Ernest claims that he purchased a Case 750 loader together with his brother in 1990 or 1991, before he married Judy. Ernest presented testimony from Judy's brother, who testified that he remembered seeing the loader at the mine in 1995 and 1996. Judy claims that the couple purchased the Case 750 in October 1996 and presented tax returns from 1996 indicating that the couple purchased it that year. Although the superior court did not determine when the Case 750 was purchased, it is clear that it was purchased sometime after the couple began living together in 1986.
Ernest claims that he purchased a D-8 Caterpillar in 1987. According to Ernest's testimony at trial, the Caterpillar was in poor condition when Ernest bought it and he rebuilt it. Judy testified that the couple bought the Caterpillar at a state auction in Grayling. Again, because the Caterpillar was purchased after 1986, the superior court properly deemed it marital property.
The Nodwell is a piece of equipment that the family used to haul fuel from the river. Ernest claims that he bought the Nodwell in Palmer in 1994. Judy testified that the couple bought it together and shipped it to the mine on a barge. As with the other pieces of mining equipment, there is no dispute that the Nodwell was purchased prior to 1986.
This piece of equipment was used to mine gold. Ernest testified that he purchased the trommel around 1988. [26] Judy claims that a photo of the trommel with their daughters in it when it was new indicates (because of the girls' ages) that the trommel was purchased after 1988. Because Ernest's own testimony indicated that he purchased the trommel sometime after 1986, the trial court properly categorized it as marital property.
Ernest testified that he purchased the Hough loader at a state auction in Umiat in 1987 or 1988 and that his brother paid to ship it to Nenana. The loader was used at the gold mine. Again, the trial court properly categorized the loader as marital property based on Ernest's own testimony that he bought it after 1986.