Court Opinion

ID: 9550427
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-07 18:35:10.443892+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T15:21:32.003932
License: Public Domain

RABINOWITZ, Chief Justice,
joined by COMPTON, Justice, concurring.
Virginia and Ben Hilliker were married for thirty-one years. The superior court took “particular cognizance” of this fact in its finding that Virginia was therefore “entitled to maintain a semblance of the lifestyle to which she has become accustomed if the resources are available to provide such a result.”1 Despite the foregoing, the court has directed the superior court on remand to impose a property distribution that could leave Virginia with less than one-half of the marital property, and annual income of less than one-fifth of Ben’s, and the possibility that she will be required to sell the family home. Such a potential result would be grossly unfair.
The superior court attempted, by means of an award of alimony, to enable Virginia to maintain a semblance of the way of life *1115to which she has become accustomed. As the majority correctly notes, we have repeatedly held that where property can provide support, alimony should not be awarded. The award of alimony should therefore be reversed, and the marital property redistributed in a manner which treats Virginia equitably. In short I would reverse the award of alimony and remand with instructions that Virginia be awarded a share of the marital property that will enable her to maintain a semblance of the lifestyle to which she has become accustomed, taking particular note of the $85,000 savings account which was originally awarded to Ben.2

. The factors enunciated in Merrill v. Merrill, 368 P.2d 546, 547-48 n. 4 (Alaska 1962) and Wanberg v. Wanberg, 664 P.2d 568, 574-75 (Alaska 1983) should provide guidance to the superior court in its reconsideration of the distribution of the marital estate after cancelling the alimony award.

. The superior court entered the following relevant findings of fact:
V
In this case, the court takes particular cognizance of the fact that this is not a marriage of 10 or 20 years, but a marriage of over 30 years.
VI
While the court does not specifically find that Defendant would not or could not have attained the position in life which he now enjoys without the assistance of Plaintiff, nevertheless, it is clear that Plaintiff invested her life in Defendant’s career, and it appears that throughout this relationship the Defendant’s career has received paramount and primary consideration with respect to where the parties lived and whether or not Plaintiff could seek any independent career in the field for which she was trained.
vn
In a case where, by agreement of the parties, the wife has devoted her primary efforts toward homemaking, the wife is entitled to maintain a semblance of the lifestyle to which she has become accustomed if the resources are available to provide such a result.
vm
The court finds that these parties have not lived excessively, but have enjoyed a very comfortable lifestyle during the past....
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XII
In reviewing the totality of the circumstances of the parties, the court finds that the Plaintiff will require an income of at least $25,000.00 per year, after taxes in order to maintain and sustain her lifestyle without the necessity of dissipating and liquidating the property awarded to her from the marital estate.