Falk v. Falk

120 P.2d 720, 48 Cal. App. 2d 772, 1941 Cal. App. LEXIS 878
CourtCalifornia Court of Appeal
DecidedDecember 29, 1941
DocketCiv. No. 6646
StatusPublished
Cited by5 cases

This text of 120 P.2d 720 (Falk v. Falk) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering California Court of Appeal primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Falk v. Falk, 120 P.2d 720, 48 Cal. App. 2d 772, 1941 Cal. App. LEXIS 878 (Cal. Ct. App. 1941).

Opinion

THE COURT.

The defendant has appealed from that portion of a decree of divorce which awards one-half of the community property to the plaintiff. She was granted a divorce on the grounds of extreme cruelty and adultery. That portion of the decree is not challenged.

The appellant contends there is no community property subject to distribution for the reason that the overhead expenses of conducting defendant’s profession and business, together with the cost of living, consumed all the funds from which the determined community stocks, bonds and securities were deemed to have been purchased. It is therefore asserted the findings and judgment to the effect that certain properties are community in nature, one-half of which were distributed to the plaintiff, are not supported by the evidence.

This is one of three separate appeals growing out of the same divorce action. They were presented to this court at the same hearing, although they were not consolidated. One appeal was taken by the defendant from an order awarding plaintiff costs and alimony pendente lite. The plaintiff perfected the second appeal from that portion of the interlocutory decree which, after specifically finding that thirty-one items of described stocks, bonds and securities were purchased after the marriage with commingled funds received from the defendant’s practice of his profession of medicine and from the proceeds and income from sales of his separate property, rendering it impossible to trace the source from which the securities were purchased, the court, nevertheless, erroneously distributed a large number of such securities to the defendant [775]*775as Ms separate property. In an opinion this day filed in that appeal, 3 Civil Number 6645 (ante, p. 762 [120 Pac. (2d) 714]), to which reference is made for a more detailed statement of the facts of this ease, that portion of the judgment was reversed. In that appeal it was held the court erred in awarding any of said thirty-one items of stocks and securities to the defendant as his separate property. The principle of law upon which that conclusion was reached, based on the presumption that all property purchased after the marriage is community property, is applicable on this appeal.

We are of the opinion the findings and judgment with respect to the character of said thirty-one items of stocks, bonds and securities as community property, are adequately supported by the evidence. The record clearly indicates that the defendant maintained bank accounts, after his marriage with the plaintiff, into which he deposited and commingled indiscriminately the proceeds derived from his business and profession as a physician with funds acquired from sales of and income from stocks, bonds and securities owned by him before his marriage, so that it was impossible to trace the sources of funds from which such properties were purchased. The defendant testified in that regard:

“Q. Are you able to tell today in which banks or what portion of the deposits in each bank was from your professional income? A. No. Q. Is there any record you have which would show that? A. All I have is my deposit book. Q. But does that show what portion of each deposit was your professional income-and what portion was profit from stocks and bonds? A. No. Q. Now in these two bank accounts you deposited all your profits from sale of securities, did you not ? A. I deposited all the money that I received. Q. From any source ? A. From every source. ... Q. Now in depositing money in your bank account, or bank accounts, did you ever segregate any of those moneys? A. No. Q. So that profits from your stocks and bonds, and the income from your professional services, the profits or proceeds from your split products or timber ventures, and from whatever other ventures you received any money from was deposited in one or the other of the bank accounts without discrimination? A. Yes. . . . Q. Can you tell us what property you have today was bought from money drawn from that bank account in the Bank of Eureka? A. What property was [776]*776bought ? Q. Teg, of any kind, personal or real. A. No, I can’t tell what was bought.”

Hr. E. Ray Horton testified in behalf of the defendant. He is a public accountant who prepared from the defendant’s records a statement of his properties and income, a memorandum of which appears in the appendix to appellant’s opening brief. He said in regard to the commingled funds, in response to interrogatories:

“Q. These records are not such, that any person can determine what portion of the money taken from the bank to buy securities or what portion of the money taken from the safe deposit box or any other sources to buy securities was community earnings or what portion was separate earnings of Dr. Falk? A. That’s true. Q. And that is absolutely impossible for anybody to determine that from the record Dr. Falk has? A. That’s right. ... Q. What was that total gross professional income for that period [from September 15, 1915, to October 31, 1937, the period during which marital relations existed] ? A. $263,425.21. Q. What was the total professional expense for that period? A. $102,079.07.”

The appellant argues that the report of the accountant, Mr. Horton, which was prepared from records, books of accounts, deeds, notes, cancelled checks and tax returns, establishes the fact that the thirty-one items of stocks, bonds and securities which were purchased after the marriage, were defendant’s separate property. We think not. The most that may reasonably be said of that report is that it creates a conflict of evidence in some respects. It will bo observed that Mr. Horton testified, in effect, that the funds which were deposited in the bank accounts and in the safe deposit box, were commingled so as to render it impossible to determine what portion thereof was derived from separate property or from community earnings. It also appears that, in estimating the aggregate income from the defendant’s professional services as a physician during the period of the marital status, which he said amounted to $263,425.21, lie did take into account his overhead expenses for that period amounting to $102,079.07. That would leave a net income from that source of $161,-346.14, which would be deemed to be community funds. There is also evidence indicating the approximate cost of living expenses during that period.

It is true that the presumption that said thirty-one [777]*777items of stocks, bonds and securities which were purchased after the marriage, under the provisions of section 164 of the Civil Code would be overcome and dispelled by evidence that specific property was actually purchased from defendant’s separate funds. But, in the present case, the evidence fails to show that any specific item of said securities was purchased from identified separate funds. The court found that all of said securities were purchased from commingled funds which renders it impossible to determine which, if any, of them were purchased with separate funds. Therefore, under the well-established rule announced in an opinion in the plaintiff’s separate appeal, 3 Civil Number 6645, supra, all of those securities must be deemed to be community property.

But, in conflict with the specific findings which were adopted by the court upon that particular issue, it is pointed out that the language of the trial court which appears in two memorandum opinions which were filed prior to the adoption of the findings, indicates the trial judge was convinced that “a

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Bluebook (online)
120 P.2d 720, 48 Cal. App. 2d 772, 1941 Cal. App. LEXIS 878, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/falk-v-falk-calctapp-1941.