Opinion ID: 1128207
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: whether the trial court abused its discretion by denying a spouse any interest in the other spouse's pension plan accrued solely during the marriage.

Text: ¶ 14. The scope of review by this Court in domestic relations appeals is limited by the substantial evidence/manifest error rule. Magee v. Magee, 661 So.2d 1117, 1122 (Miss. 1995). (This Court will not disturb the findings of a chancellor unless the chancellor was manifestly wrong, clearly erroneous or an erroneous legal standard was applied.) Id. (quoting Bell v. Parker, 563 So.2d 594, 596-97 (Miss. 1990)). ¶ 15. This Court has repeatedly held that a spouse who has made a material contribution toward the acquisition of an asset titled in the name of the other may claim an equitable interest in such jointly accumulated property. Jones v. Jones, 532 So.2d 574, 580-81 (Miss. 1988); Hemsley v. Hemsley, 639 So.2d 909, 913 (Miss. 1994); Ferguson v. Ferguson, 639 So.2d 921, 934 (Miss. 1994). Marital partners are equal contributors to the marriage regardless of the fact that both might not be at work in the marketplace. Hemsley, 639 So.2d at 915. Marital property has been defined as any and all property acquired or accumulated during the marriage. Id. Marital property is subject to equitable distribution by the chancellor, unless it can be shown by proof that such marital property was acquired prior to or outside the marriage. Id. at 914. ¶ 16. In the case sub judice, the chancellor held that Mrs. Tillman was not entitled to one-half of Mr. Tillman's retirement fund. The chancellor stated that the sum accumulated as a result of Mr. Tillman's wages only. As a result, Mrs. Tillman had no claim to the retirement fund. Clearly, this is erroneous. In Johnson v. Johnson , this Court held that a spouse's retirement plan funded solely by his employer was subject to equitable division, because the asset was marital property accumulated during the marriage. Johnson v. Johnson, 650 So.2d 1281, 1285-86 (Miss. 1994). ¶ 17. The Court remains steadfast in its position that the domestic contributions of one spouse are equally as valuable as the contributions made by the spouse in the marketplace toward a retirement fund. Id. at 1285-86; Hemsley, 639 So.2d at 915. In Ferguson, the Court held the following: Although contributions of domestic services are not made directly to a retirement fund, they are nonetheless valid material contributions which indirectly contribute to any number of marital assets, thereby making such assets jointly acquired. And, it must be remembered, the goal of the chancellor in a divorce case is to do equity. When a couple has been married for twenty-four years, yet the only retirement benefits accumulated throughout the marriage are titled in the name of only one spouse, is it equitable to find only one spouse entitled to financial security upon retirement when both have benefitted from the employer-funded plan along the way? When one spouse has contributed directly to the fund, by virtue of his/her labor, while the other has contributed indirectly, by virtue of domestic services and/or earned income which both parties have enjoyed rather than invested, the spouse without retirement funds in his/her own name could instead have been working outside the home and/or investing his/her wages in preparation for his/her own retirement. When separate plans for each spouse are not in existence, it is only equitable to allow both parties to reap the benefits of the one existing retirement plan, to which both parties have materially contributed in some fashion. Ferguson, 639 So.2d at 934. ¶ 18. Shirley and Wallace Tillman had been married nearly 28 years. Wallace began working for International Paper after he and Shirley had married. She did not work outside the home during the marriage, but certainly made domestic contributions to the marriage by keeping the house and caring for the children. Shirley Tillman was entitled to equitable distribution of Wallace Tillman's pension fund. The fact that the pension plan was funded by his employer is of no consequence. Because these funds were accumulated during the marriage, they were marital property properly subject to equitable distribution. Johnson, 650 So.2d at 1285; Hemsley, 639 So.2d at 915. ¶ 19. This Court in the past has reversed and remanded for further hearings in accordance with the guidelines set forth in Ferguson, where the wife was not awarded a specific interest in the husband's pension plan. Magee, 661 So.2d at 1124. However, the chancellor's decision regarding the division of marital property should be viewed as a whole in determining whether he abused his discretion. [I]t must be remembered, the goal of the chancellor in a divorce case is to do equity. Ferguson, 639 So.2d at 934. In Johnson, this Court stated that a chancellor may adjust his awards to do equity, and has considerable latitude in doing so. Johnson, 650 So.2d at 1287. When viewing the overall property division by the chancellor, it is obvious that Shirley Tillman received an equitable distribution of the marital property, even though she did not receive a portion of Wallace's pension plan. ¶ 20. The record indicates that all monies and property inherited by Shirley were commingled either into joint accounts or as jointly held property. Therefore, these nonmarital assets were converted to marital assets, subject to equitable distribution. Johnson, 650 So.2d at 1286. The chancellor correctly noted this fact at trial. ¶ 21. The chancellor took into account that the money and property Shirley inherited were commingled and became joint marital property when he made the equitable division of the marital home. The house and property were valued at $120,000. The chancellor awarded Shirley exclusive use and possession of the home and 70% equity interest in the home. Because the property was unencumbered, the value to Shirley was $84,000. Wallace received a 30% interest, which equates to $36,000. Wallace's 401k plan was valued at $35,634.70 and was divided equally among the parties. Shirley and Wallace each received $17,817.35. Shirley's total property settlement equaled $101,817.35. Wallace's portion of the property settlement was $53,817. It is obvious that Shirley received a good deal more than Wallace. ¶ 22. Wallace's vested interest in his pension fund would pay him $866 per month beginning when Wallace turned 65 or a lump sum value of $30,919.43 payable at age 65 (calculated as of December 1995). According to the worksheet relating to Wallace's retirement plan, the lump sum value of the plan was vested but not payable until 2012, which is when he would turn 65. If the chancellor had given Shirley a one-half interest in the pension plan, she would have a claim to a $15,459.72 lump sum payment or $433 per month, payable when Wallace reached age 65. ¶ 23. The chancellor applied an erroneous legal standard when he failed to include the pension fund acquired during the marriage as a marital asset. Still, the chancellor reached an extremely equitable result that actually favored Shirley Tillman. The chancellor recognized at trial that the inheritance of Shirley Tillman had been commingled with other marital assets such that the inheritance was marital property subject to equitable distribution. Yet, he awarded her a considerably larger interest in the marital home, in light of testimony that Wallace had personally made improvements to the home and held the property jointly. ¶ 24. It is as if the chancellor took into consideration that Shirley had commingled her inheritance (monetary and realty) into the marital estate so that it was subject to equitable distribution, but he ignored the contributions made by Wallace to the marital home by awarding Shirley a 70% interest compared to his 30% interest. Such a distribution more than amply compensated for the chancellor's failure to grant Shirley a portion of Wallace's pension fund. If the case was remanded and the chancellor did award Shirley a portion of Wallace's pension plan, the chancellor might also decrease her awarded interest in the marital home in order to achieve an overall equitable property division.