In re Marriage of Flosman

513 N.E.2d 879, 160 Ill. App. 3d 832, 112 Ill. Dec. 270, 1987 Ill. App. LEXIS 3176
CourtAppellate Court of Illinois
DecidedAugust 26, 1987
DocketNo. 86—1556
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 513 N.E.2d 879 (In re Marriage of Flosman) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Appellate Court of Illinois primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
In re Marriage of Flosman, 513 N.E.2d 879, 160 Ill. App. 3d 832, 112 Ill. Dec. 270, 1987 Ill. App. LEXIS 3176 (Ill. Ct. App. 1987).

Opinion

JUSTICE WHITE

delivered the opinion of the court;

The trial court dissolved the marriage of petitioner Blanka Flosman and respondent Frank Flosman and it allocated the parties’ assets. Both parties filed post-trial petitions for reconsideration of the property distribution and maintenance awards. The trial court entered orders disposing of both petitions for reconsideration. Blanka appeals from the original order and from the orders on reconsideration; Frank cross-appeals from the maintenance award ordered on reconsideration.

Blanka married Frank in 1955, and they had two children, Blanche and Frank George Flosman. Blanka filed her “Petition for legal separation or in the alternative dissolution of marriage” in January 1981. On January 23, 1981, the trial court entered a temporary restraining order which enjoined Frank from withdrawing savings from bank accounts in his name before February 2, 1981. In February the trial court renewed the temporary restraining order and it ordered Frank to pay Blanka $1,000 per month as unallocated maintenance and child support. In March 1981, Blanka petitioned to have Frank held in contempt for his failure to pay her $1,000 for the month and for withdrawing $5,000 from his savings account on January 26, 1981. He sent a check for that amount to his brother, and they opened a joint account in Canada with the check. Before hearing on the contempt petition, Blanka discovered that Frank had withdrawn an additional $28,000 from his savings accounts. The court ordered Frank to place $22,306 in an escrow account, pay Blanka $3,256 as equalization for a part of the withdrawals, and pay $1,000 of Blanka’s attorney fees.

In December 1981, Frank received notice that the factory at which he worked was permanently closing. On Frank’s petition for modification of temporary maintenance, the trial court ordered Frank to pay Blanka 35% of his net income from all sources. The court allowed Frank to withdraw the $22,306 escrow account to meet his expenses prior to the end of trial.

Trial began in February 1983. The parties’ principal assets were two apartment buildings. They stipulated that the three-unit apartment building in Cicero was worth $102,500, and there was no mortgage on the property. They also stipulated that the 32-unit apartment building in Berwyn was worth $400,000. The parties did not stipulate to the outstanding debt on the Berwyn property, nor did they stipulate to the net equity in that building.

Blanka testified that she lived with her 21-year-old son, Frank George, in one of the apartments of the Cicero property. Her 26-year-old daughter, Blanche, lived in the basement apartment and paid her $175 monthly rent. The tenants in the upstairs apartment paid her $330 per month. Blanka suffered from arthritis and mitral valve prolapse. The pain rendered her incapable of performing any physical work, and it caused her to leave her job as an assembly worker in 1978. She had not sought work or rehabilitation since 1978. She testified that her expenses were approximately $1,430 per month, and she had outstanding debts of $9,400.

Frank testified that- he lived in one of the 32 units of the Berwyn property. He received unemployment compensation for six months after he lost his job in December 1981, but he had not sought work since his unemployment benefits were terminated. He should receive pension benefits of approximately $60 per month beginning in 1995. Neither party presented any evidence regarding the present value of Frank’s pension benefits.

At a hearing in August 1983, Frank testified that he owned two cars, a 1974 Pinto and a 1974 Mercury, but he stated that both cars were worthless. Blanka’s attorney said: “There is no value on either automobile.” The court responded: “It’s agreed there is no value for either vehicle.” The court later asked: “Do each of the parties want there to be no value as to the furniture, just that each shall have what is in their possession ***?” Neither party objected.

Frank further testified that he had several savings and checking accounts at various banks. The banks’ summaries of these accounts were admitted into evidence; however, those exhibits are not included in the record on appeal. Frank testified that he owed $11,000 in unpaid income taxes for the years from 1977 to 1982. He had been hospitalized in 1982 and he owed the hospital $37,425 for its services. He owed an additional $4,918 for medical care he received in 1983, and on the date of his testimony he had not yet received bills for more recent services. The court found that even if Frank had insurance which covered these services, he would owe at least $8,000 as his share of the payments. His medical condition rendered him incapable of working. He received social security benefits of $616 each month, beginning in January 1983. He had not given any part of his social security benefits to Blanka, although the court had ordered him to give her 35% of his income from all sources.

The trial court found that the parties’ liabilities exceeded their liquid assets, and neither party could earn enough money to cover their debts. The court entered an order on September 1, 1983, requiring Frank to present his medical bills to his insurer, finding him more than $1,700 in arrears in his support payments to Blanka, and ordering the parties to list both the Berwyn and the Cicero properties for sale with real estate brokers at prices 35% greater than the stipulated market values.

On October 21, 1983, Blanka moved to have Frank held in contempt for his failure to list the Berwyn property with a realtor. The court issued a rule to show cause, but it discharged the rule following the hearing on October 24, 1983. Blanka subsequently moved twice to have Frank held in contempt for failure to comply with discovery orders and once for failure to list the Berwyn property for sale with a multiple listing realtor. Frank testified that investors had offered to buy the Berwyn building for $400,000, but he refused to sell because the offer was less than the building was worth. In November 1984, Blanka sought to have Frank held in contempt because he had obstructed efforts to sell the Berwyn property and because he had failed to pay real estate taxes for the Cicero property as required by an earlier order. The court ordered Frank to use his IRA to pay the taxes, and it ordered him to list the Berwyn property with a multiple listing realtor. The court reserved the issue of sanctions for contempt for determination with attorney fees at the conclusion of the case.

Before the court began to apportion the property, it restated the valuations of the properties at a hearing held on December 11, 1984. The parties again agreed to the stipulated values of $102,500 for the Cicero building, with no mortgage, and $400,000 for the Berwyn building; the court found that the net equity in the Berwyn property was $180,742. Blanka’s attorney stated in his closing argument that Blanka sought to retain the Cicero property and he argued that she was entitled to 65% of the proceeds from the sale of the Berwyn property. The attorney did not disavow the previous agreements he had made that the cars and the furniture were worthless. Neither in closing argument nor in the petition for dissolution did Blanka seek any portion of Frank’s pensions, nor did she present evidence or argument concerning the value of the pensions.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
513 N.E.2d 879, 160 Ill. App. 3d 832, 112 Ill. Dec. 270, 1987 Ill. App. LEXIS 3176, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/in-re-marriage-of-flosman-illappct-1987.