In re Marriage of Schiffbauer

2023 IL App (3d) 220393-U
CourtAppellate Court of Illinois
DecidedNovember 3, 2023
Docket3-22-0393
StatusUnpublished

This text of 2023 IL App (3d) 220393-U (In re Marriage of Schiffbauer) 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 Schiffbauer, 2023 IL App (3d) 220393-U (Ill. Ct. App. 2023).

Opinion

NOTICE: This order was filed under Supreme Court Rule 23 and is not precedent except in the limited circumstances allowed under Rule 23(e)(1).

2023 IL App (3d) 220393-U

Order filed November 3, 2023 ____________________________________________________________________________

IN THE

APPELLATE COURT OF ILLINOIS

THIRD DISTRICT

In re MARRIAGE OF ) Appeal from the Circuit Court ) of the 13th Judicial Circuit, RITA SCHIFFBAUER, ) La Salle County, Illinois, ) Petitioner-Appellee/Cross-Appellant, ) Appeal No. 3-22-0393 ) Circuit No. 14-D-59 v. ) ) DOUG SCHIFFBAUER, ) Honorable ) Troy D. Holland, Respondent-Appellant/Cross-Appellee. ) Judge, Presiding. ____________________________________________________________________________

JUSTICE PETERSON delivered the judgment of the court. Justices Albrecht and Davenport concurred in the judgment. ____________________________________________________________________________

ORDER

¶1 Held: The court’s classification of the 160-acre property was against the manifest weight of the evidence. The court’s classification of the 120-acre property was not against the manifest weight of the evidence. We need not decide whether the court abused its discretion in splitting the marital estate, as that division will need to be revisited. The court’s determination that there was no dissipation related to the parties’ son performing farmwork and being paid for it was not against the manifest weight of the evidence. The court must reexamine the method by which the dissipation award is to be paid. ¶2 Respondent, Doug Schiffbauer, appeals the La Salle County circuit court’s amended

judgment for dissolution of marriage. Doug argues that the court’s finding that certain real estate

was Petitioner, Rita Schiffbauer’s, nonmarital property was against the manifest weight of the

evidence. Rita cross-appeals, arguing that if this court agrees with Doug’s argument, then this

court should determine that it was likewise against the manifest weight of the evidence for the

court to find that certain other real estate was Doug’s nonmarital property. She also argues that

the court abused its discretion in splitting the marital estate. Rita further argues that the court’s

finding, that Doug did not dissipate the marital estate by having their son, Kirby, farm with him

and paying Kirby for his work, was against the manifest weight of the evidence. Rita also argues

that the court erred in the manner by which it ordered dissipation paid to her. We affirm in part,

reverse in part, and remand to the trial court.

¶3 I. BACKGROUND

¶4 Rita and Doug were married in December 1983. They had three children, including Kirby

Schiffbauer. Rita filed a petition for dissolution of the marriage in March 2014. The matter

proceeded to trial. Rita and Doug stipulated to the marital or nonmarital status of all property,

with a few exceptions, including two parcels of real estate. The disputed properties consisted of

160 acres (160-acre property) in Tonica, which Rita argued was her nonmarital property and 120

acres (120-acre property) in Tonica, which Doug argued was his nonmarital property. Rita also

claimed that Doug dissipated marital funds, in part, by paying Kirby for farming marital

property, by selling farm equipment to Kirby for less than its value and by trading in marital

farm equipment to buy new equipment with Kirby. Evidence was presented that Rita had

approximately 12% interest in a company established by her parents and stood to inherit a

greater interest. Rita is also a beneficiary of her brother’s revocable trust. Doug stood to inherit

2 from his parents. Rita’s nonmarital property was used as collateral to purchase additional marital

property that is not in dispute on appeal.

¶5 A. 160-Acre Property

¶6 Rita testified that the 160-acre property was acquired in 2001 and is titled in her name.

She acquired the property by exchanging farmland she had been gifted by her grandparents (gift

property). Rita sold the gift property for $210,000. The parties purchased the 160-acre property

for $336,000. She and Doug obtained a bridge loan and then a mortgage to finance the difference

between what she received from the gift property and the cost of the 160-acre property. She and

Doug bought the 160-acre property with the intent to farm that property. Prior to buying the 160-

acre property, they cash rented it. Farm subsidies for the 160-acre property were made payable to

Rita. Marital funds paid the taxes on the 160-acre property during the marriage.

¶7 Doug testified that the 160-acre property was purchased with the intent of being brought

into the marriage and farmed as marital property. Doug has been farming the 160-acre property

and earning marital income from the property since it was purchased. The property was

purchased in 2001 and is titled in Rita’s name only. The mortgage obtained to purchase the

property was executed by both Doug and Rita.

¶8 B. 120-Acre Property

¶9 Doug testified that he bought the 120-acre property prior to the marriage, in March 1983.

Doug did not put any money down for the purchase of the property and the first mortgage

payment was made in January 1984, after he and Rita were married. The promissory note for the

purchase of the property was “rewritten” in 1985 in both Doug and Rita’s names.

3 ¶ 10 C. Kirby Farming

¶ 11 Rita testified that Doug never discussed with her that Kirby would be farming with him

and receiving a portion of the farm income. Prior to farming with Doug, Kirby was in school and

received a degree in agriculture. Kirby graduated in 2014 and got a job. Rita was asked if, after

Kirby graduated college, he came home to farm on the marital property. She stated that after

Kirby graduated he took a full-time job. Kirby was at the farm periodically, but was not a full-

time farmer. Doug’s counsel questioned whether that was because Rita would not let him. Rita

responded that she thought “it’s appropriate when the marriage is dissolved to give [their] kids

that opportunity,” but she did not want to involve them during the divorce. Rita noted that her

intention was not to keep her kids off of the farm but instead to give them the opportunity to

work on the farm; however, she felt that the divorce should be resolved first. Rita believed that

the money Kirby was paid for farming “should have gone to the marital pot.” She did not

question that Kirby actually farmed the land and had done so starting in 2014. Rita’s claim for

dissipation is based on her belief that Kirby should not have been paid anything because he

should not have been working on the farm. She could not say at trial that she did not want Kirby

farming. Rita claimed that Kirby was farming without her consent. She stated that it should not

have happened during the divorce and if the divorce had ended sooner the opportunity for him to

farm could have arisen sooner.

¶ 12 Rita agreed that Kirby had always taken an interest in farming the marital farm. She

supported Kirby in his decision to select a college major in agriculture and she talked about that

decision with him. When Kirby chose to go to school for agriculture Rita knew that when Kirby

graduated he wanted to “come back and farm.” Rita was asked if it was correct that Kirby came

home and “immediately start[ed] farming, according to the plan that everyone kind of understood

4 to be?” She answered that Kirby was farming. Rita agreed that since Kirby was farming the

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2023 IL App (3d) 220393-U, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/in-re-marriage-of-schiffbauer-illappct-2023.