Court Opinion

ID: 9883804
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-10-06 02:20:33.418998+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T07:48:31.407375
License: Public Domain

SEDGWICK, Judge
(dissenting).
I respectfully dissent only from the majority’s determination of the maintenance issue.
Property and maintenance provisions of the dissolution judgment in this case were based entirely on the parties’ stipulation. When respondent moved the court to enforce the terms of the decree the court found an ambiguity in the following paragraph of the stipulation:
In addition to that division of the real estate, the Respondent would also make payments to the Petitioner in the amount of $10,000 a year for four years. The first payment would be due and payable on May 15th, 1983, and the other payments would be due on the 15th day of May in 1984, 1985 and 1986. The first two of those would be identified and accepted by the Petitioner as lump sum maintenance payments and the second two will be accepted by her as lump sum distribution of the property settlement.
(Emphasis added).
This paragraph followed paragraphs which divided 13 properties between appellant and respondent. The trial court recognized, as do we, that the $10,000 payments to be made each year were actually property settlement payments meant to equalize the division. The trial court attempted to do equity by stating that since those payments designated as maintenance were due immediately, but merely payable in two installments, they were not affected by Minn.Stat. § 518.64, subd. 3.
If the obvious intent of the parties is to be obliterated by the rigid application of *856Minn.Stat. § 518.64, subd. 3, then the original stipulation was a fraud upon one of the parties or the court. I would either affirm the trial court or set aside the maintenance and property provisions of the judgment and permit trial on those issues, rather than permit appellant to obtain a disproportionate share of the property by reneging on his agreement.