Court Opinion

ID: 9765832
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-29 04:21:24.519537+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T07:30:16.051634
License: Public Domain

PAXTON, Judge,
concurring in part and dissenting in part:
I concur with the majority, excepting that portion of the opinion that deals with maintenance. The majority’s treatment of maintenance is troublesome to me in two fundamental respects. First, the majority says that “[I]f a divorce (sic) occurs shortly after a professional spouse has acquired a degree, an award of the lion’s share of the parties’ marital property to the working spouse can be justified under KRS 403.-190(1).” Ante at 223. The error here is that the Inman concept was developed because there was no “lion’s share” to award. Second, the majority talks about awarding maintenance to help the non-professional spouse “maintain a standard of living reasonably similar to the one enjoyed during the marriage.” And therein lies the crux of the problem. In the usual case, the standard of living maintained during the marriage would be rather spartan, where the marriage is dissolved immediately after acquisition of the professional degree or license, for example. I am of the opinion we should be concerned with helping the non-professional spouse realize, to some extent, the expectations of the “good life” *227that probably caused Mm or her to support the professional spouse in the first place.
I believe the trial court erred in awarding Fredda $10,000.00 as lump-sum maintenance. The trial court concluded that this award was not governed by the principles enunciated in Inman v. Inman, Ky.App., 578 S.W.2d 266 (1979) (Inman I), and furthermore that Fredda was not entitled to maintenance because she could support herself through appropriate employment. KRS 403.200(l)(b). The majority ignores this finding, yet there is substantial evidence in the record to support it, so we cannot say it is clearly erroneous. CR 52.01.
While it may appear strange that Fredda is denied maintenance because she can support herself, and then be awarded maintenance based on Leveck v. Leveck, Ky.App., 614 S.W.2d 710 (1981), a careful reading of Inman I, Leveck, Moss v. Moss, Ky.App., 639 S.W.2d 370 (1982), and Inman v. Inman, Ky., 648 S.W.2d 847 (1982) (Inman II), suggests that ‘we are dealing with an issue that has not clearly found a home as either maintenance or property.
In Inman I, Sue Inman was not entitled to maintenance. This court held that she had a property interest in her husband’s dental license in order to enable the trial court to “work equity.” In Leveck, Judith Leveck was found to be entitled to maintenance. Terrence Leveck’s medical license was not treated as property, but the trial court “worked equity” by awarding Judith $10,000.00 in lump-sum maintenance in addition to periodic maintenance. In Moss, Linda Moss was awarded periodic maintenance, and this court in considering Thomas Moss’s pharmacy degree as marital property, said:
[W]e need make clear initially that our remarks are limited in effect to the acquisition of the pharmacy degree and not the subsequently issued license.
Moss, 634 S.W.2d at 374. This court went on to remand the case to the trial court with instructions that:
Mrs. Moss’s interest is to be restricted to recouping her portion of the education investment. The extent of the return upon this investment is to be “the amount spent for direct support and school expenses during the period of education, plus reasonable interest and adjustments for inflation.”
Id. at 375, quoting Inman I, 578 S.W.2d at 269.
In Inman II, our Supreme Court, in reversing this court, stated:
If the issue was before this court, we would be constrained to the view that the proper formula to be followed in placing a value on an educational degree secured by a spouse, to which the other spouse contributed financially, is to measure the recovery by the amount of money the non-college going spouse contributed toward living expenses, the amount of money contributed for educational costs, and the potential for increase in future earning capacity made possible by the degree, thus not treating the degree as marital property.
648 S.W.2d at 852.
In Inman I, the wife was not entitled to maintenance so the degree was treated as marital property. Now, in Inman II, our Supreme Court is suggesting that Sue In-man is eligible for a monetary award even though she is not entitled to maintenance and without considering the degree as marital property.
In Leveck, the contributing spouse was found to be entitled to maintenance, and equity was attained by the awarding of lump-sum maintenance in addition to periodic maintenance. In Moss, this court called a pharmacy degree marital property, but made it clear that it only wanted Mrs. Moss to recoup her investment; she was not to share in the rewards of the license.
I believe the law, in Kentucky, is that one who contributes financial support toward a spouse’s acquisition of an educational degree is entitled, upon dissolution of the marriage, to recover a monetary award from the spouse without regard to entitlement for maintenance, nonmarital property, or marital property and without regard to whether the degree, or subsequently issued license, is marital property. This case *228should be remanded to the trial court with instructions to make the educational-degree monetary award; then, to effect an assignment of nonmarital property, KRS 403.-190(1); then, to divide the marital property pursuant to KRS 403.190(1); and, finally, to consider whether either spouse is entitled to maintenance.
The trial court, in setting the amount of the educational-degree award should take into consideration the amount of money Fredda contributed toward living expenses and educational costs, and the potential increase in Randy’s earnings made possible by the degree. Inman II, supra. “The Court of Appeals is bound by and shall follow applicable precedents established in the opinions of the Supreme Court.” SCR 1.030(8)(a).