Court Opinion

ID: 9852266
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-09-24 05:27:30.308312+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T09:22:24.827107
License: Public Domain

*191MESCHKE, Justice,
concurring and dissenting.
I concur in the majority opinion’s decision on custody and spousal support. I respectfully dissent from the reversal of the property division.
The amount of property was modest. Values were virtually all agreed or undisputed. It was an uncomplicated property situation.
The trial court attached a copy of the spouses’ signed “8.3 Property & Debt Schedule” as Exhibit 2 to the Findings, Conclusion, and Order for Judgment. This Schedule agreed on the value of items to-talling $5,650, in addition to the home which was valued equal to its mortgage and awarded to Christopher. The trial court set aside items totalling $1,520 to Cynthia and items totalling $4,130 to Christopher. Evidence at the trial disclosed that Christopher also had a bank balance of $1,050 and nearly $3,000 in available retirement funds, both not reported on the schedule. Although Christopher was also left with nearly $10,000 in debts (compared to $450 for Cynthia), most of Christopher’s debt ($8,000) were for his student loans preceding the marriage. Without offsetting debts, Christopher would keep over $6,000 more in property, as well as the house, unless some adjustment was made.
While it is not possible to compute the “disparity” to exactly reflect the $6,000 ordered paid as a property award to Cynthia, it was also payable four months later without interest. I do not believe that the award was so substantially unequal or unexplainable as to compel added legal proceedings and expense for these two young people. Therefore, I would affirm the trial court’s property division.