Corley v. Corley

594 P.2d 1172, 92 N.M. 716
CourtNew Mexico Supreme Court
DecidedMay 16, 1979
Docket12062
StatusPublished
Cited by20 cases

This text of 594 P.2d 1172 (Corley v. Corley) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering New Mexico Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Corley v. Corley, 594 P.2d 1172, 92 N.M. 716 (N.M. 1979).

Opinion

OPINION

EASLEY, Justice.

Corley appeals from a court-ordered division of property in his divorce action against Mrs. Corley. We reverse.

Corley challenges several findings of the trial court as not supported by substantial evidence. He also argues that the court erred in failing to find that the community’s expenditures exceeded their income during the marriage, and that the court’s conclusion that the Belen Farm was community property is not supported by the findings.

The evidence is quite complicated. The relevant unchallenged findings in the trial court are: The parties were married March 21, 1971. Only a division of community property and a determination of separate property was under consideration. Corley Homes, Inc. was in existence at the time of the marriage, and was solely owned by Mr. Corley. This corporation purchased 64.4 acres of land (the Belen Farm) on May 7, 1971 with $22,533.61 of the corporation’s funds, by check dated April 30, 1971. On November 15, 1972, Corley Homes, Inc. owed $22,597.43 on the Belen Farm to Albuquerque National Bank. On the latter date, the corporation conveyed the Belen Farm to Burnett Realty. That company assumed the balance owing to Albuquerque National Bank to pay the remaining purchase price for the east 31.315 acres of the Belen Farm, after payment of $7,972 to Corley Homes, Inc. Burnett Realty acquired no equitable interest in the west 33.185 acres.

On November 21, 1975 Burnett Realty conveyed to the parties, as joint tenants, the west 33.185 acres of the Belen Farm. On November 20,1975 a mortgage and note were executed by the parties in the amount of $25,000 on 15.877 of the west 33.185 acres of the Belen Farm. On January 19, 1976 a mortgage and note were executed by the parties for $10,030 on 17.308 of the west 33.185 acres of the Belen Farm. The money obtained from the January 19, 1976 mortgage was loaned to the Corley Corporation, owned by Glenn Corley, Mr. Corley’s son, in January of 1976. Corley Corporation repaid the January, 1976 mortgage, in part by repaying the bank with a $10,000 Corley Corporation check. Corley Corporation has paid back loans from Corley which came from the mortgage of November 20, 1975 by paying community indebtedness on behalf of Corley in excess of $4,050. Community bills paid from the Corley Homes, Inc. funds consisted of household bills of the parties and personal bills of the parties.

The parties grew hay on the 33.185 acres described above. They trained horses on the land. Mrs. Corley contributed her labors and talents to the improvements on the 33.185 acres consisting of a three-bedroom house, a barn and an old milk barn remodeled into a guest house. Prior to the marriage, the improvements to the Belen Farm included the installation of an irrigation well and pump and land levelling, having total value of $6,813.

In determining whether challenged findings have substantial support in the evidence, we review the record with the following rules in mind:

[WJhere there is a conflict in the evidence, upon review, the evidence must be considered in a light most favorable to the successful party, indulging all reasonable inferences to be drawn therefrom in support of the judgment. (Citations omitted.)

Gray v. J. P. (Bum) Gibbins, Inc., 75 N.M. 584, 586, 408 P.2d 506, 507 (1965).

A reasonable inference is a conclusion arrived at by a process of reasoning. This conclusion must be a rational and logical deduction from facts admitted or established by the evidence, when such facts are viewed in the light of common knowledge or common experience. (Citation omitted.)

Samora v. Bradford, 81 N.M. 205, 207, 465 P.2d 88, 90 (Ct.App.1970).

[TJhe testimony of a witness, whether interested or disinterested, cannot arbitrarily be disregarded by the trier of the facts * * *.

Medler v. Henry, 44 N.M. 275, 283, 101 P.2d 398, 403 (1940). See also Aragon v. Boyd, 80 N.M. 14, 450 P.2d 614 (1969); Frederick v. Younger Van Lines, 74 N.M. 320, 393 P.2d 438 (1964); and In re Faulkner’s Estate, 35 N.M. 125, 290 P. 801 (1930).

We first consider the challenged findings that Corley commingled his separate and community funds into the corporation funds of Corley Homes, Inc., and that the corporate account of Corley Homes, Inc. was treated by Corley as a personal account and was used for the benefit of the community. Without detailing the evidence here, it is sufficient to say that the record supports these findings and they are upheld.

We next consider the findings that on November 21, 1975, the Belen Farm was vested in the parties as joint tenants, and that it was community property. Our review of the record discloses no evidence that the Belen Farm was purchased with community funds. In fact, the unchallenged findings indicate otherwise. There is no finding, nor clear and convincing evidence to support a finding, of transmutation. Burlingham v. Burlingham, 72 N.M. 433, 384 P.2d 699 (1963). Thus, the finding that the Belen Farm was community property is not supported by substantial evidence. Corley testified that when he conveyed title to the entire 64.4 acres to Burnett Realty, that company was to pay off the mortgage on the entire farm, and then deed back the west half. There was corroborative testimony. The unchallenged findings of the court are entirely consistent with this testimony, and the court in fact found that Burnett Realty acquired no equitable interest in the west 33.185 acres of the Belen Farm.

Corley testified that he had no intent to own the property jointly with Mrs. Corley and never instructed Burnett Realty to fill out the deed form in that manner. Mrs. Corley paid no consideration for a joint tenancy interest. The deed of November 21, 1975 cannot alone be relied upon as substantial evidence that the Belen Farm was vested in the parties as joint tenants. Wiggins v. Rush, 83 N.M. 133, 489 P.2d 641 (1971); Burlingham, supra; In re Trimble’s Estate, 57 N.M. 51, 253 P.2d 805 (1953). The finding of joint tenancy is not supported by the evidence.

The court found that personal bills paid by Corley Homes for 1976, which totalled approximately $21,300, were personal income of Mr. Corley and not an indebtedness of the community. The record indicates that personal bills paid for the year 1976 were paid from the account of Corley Corporation, not from the account of Corley Homes, Inc. Mrs. Corley testified that personal expenses were routinely paid from the account of Corley Corporation for the year 1976.

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Bluebook (online)
594 P.2d 1172, 92 N.M. 716, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/corley-v-corley-nm-1979.