Opinion ID: 1333278
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 7

Heading: The Charleston House

Text: By the same token, however, this Courts finds a problem with the determination of the family law master and the circuit court that Ms. Lewis should be awarded the house in Charleston. As indicated above, Chafin purchased the house on April 29, 1989, approximately 1 and ½ years prior to the parties' marriage. Mr. Chafin made a down payment on the property of $32,000 and was solely obligated upon the note and trust deed thereon. Chafin, however, was not listed as the grantee. Rather, Ms. Lewis was named as the purchaser as trustee for Chafin. In that regard, Chafin asserts that he purchased the Charleston property through Ms. Lewis, as trustee, so that his residency in Mingo County as a member of the Legislature would not be questioned. Thus, Mr. Chafin contends that the Charleston house was purchased merely to accommodate his legislative duties in Charleston and that the house was not marital property. On the other hand, Lewis contends that the house in Charleston was correctly designated as marital property and properly awarded to her. In particular, Lewis notes that, although she purchased the house as trustee for Chafin, an application for insurance on the property she completed in 1989 indicated that Chafin was to be her husband, thus suggesting that the property was purchased in contemplation of marriage. Moreover, Lewis points out that she contributed $10,000 of her own money to remodel the house, again suggesting that the house was marital property. In stating that the Charleston house was marital property, both Lewis and the court below relied upon the decision of this Court in Hinerman v. Hinerman, 194 W.Va. 256, 460 S.E.2d 71 (1995). In Hinerman, a couple searched for and located a residence in contemplation of marriage. The residence was purchased on October 8, 1968, and the parties were married shortly thereafter on November 30, 1968. The property was purchased in the name of the husband, and his name remained solely upon the deed, even though he promised that he would add his wife's name to the title after the marriage. The parties used the house as their marital home, and the deed of trust payments were made from a joint checking account. Later, however, the unrefuted evidence was that the husband and wife did not add her name to the title because they feared the property could potentially be exposed to liability claims against the wife's dance school. In holding that the residence was marital property, rather than the separate property of the husband, this Court, in Hinerman, stated: The appellant and the appellee shopped for and located the property, and the appellee [husband] stated that he purchased the residence in contemplation of marriage. The appellant and the appellee were married soon after the October 8, 1968, deed. Moreover, the appellee, in his testimony before the family law master, indicated that he intended to add the appellant's name to the title after the date of marriage. 194 W.Va. at 260, 460 S.E.2d at 75. Thus, Hinerman presented a rather unique set of circumstances, and stands somewhat alone on the landscape of marital property law. Although subject to exceptions (as indicated in Hinerman ), W.Va.Code, 48-2-1(f) [1992], provides that separate property includes [p]roperty acquired by a person before marriage[.] See, n. 11, supra. Here, in contrast to Hinerman, the house in Charleston was purchased 1 and ½ years prior to the parties' marriage. Except for the insurance application, the record reveals no evidence that the house was purchased in contemplation of marriage. After the marriage and until they separated, the parties lived and worked primarily in Williamson. Accordingly, the circumstances in this action lack the compelling circumstances which, in Hinerman, resulted in the conclusion that the residence was marital property. Therefore, this Court is of the opinion that the circuit court committed error in awarding the Charleston house to Lewis. [17] In so holding, however, we note that the family law master and the circuit court confirmed Lewis' assertion that she contributed $10,000 of her separate funds to remodel the Charleston house. Consistent with our holding concerning the Williamson house, therefore, this Court concludes that a reimbursement to Lewis for that contribution is warranted. Consequently, we hold that Chafin is entitled to the house in Charleston, subject to a $10,000 reimbursement to Lewis for her contribution of separate funds to that property. [18]