In Re the Marriage of Taylor

848 P.2d 478, 257 Mont. 122, 50 State Rptr. 186, 1993 Mont. LEXIS 45
CourtMontana Supreme Court
DecidedFebruary 25, 1993
Docket92-277
StatusPublished
Cited by21 cases

This text of 848 P.2d 478 (In Re the Marriage of Taylor) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Montana Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
In Re the Marriage of Taylor, 848 P.2d 478, 257 Mont. 122, 50 State Rptr. 186, 1993 Mont. LEXIS 45 (Mo. 1993).

Opinions

JUSTICE HUNT

delivered the Opinion of the Court.

Appellant Stephen Taylor appeals from a decree of dissolution from the Tenth Judicial District, Judith Basin County, dividing the marital property of the parties.

We affirm.

We present the issues on appeal in the following order:

1. Was the District Court’s division of the stock clearly erroneous?

2. Was the District Court’s valuation of Stephen’s shares of stock clearly erroneous?

3. Did the District Court err by ordering a cash settlement in lieu of distributing Taylor Honey, Inc., shares of stock to Judith?

4. Did the District Court err by awarding attorney fees when they were not pled and no evidence was submitted to determine if attorney fees were required?

The parties were married on May 13, 1974, in Reno, Nevada. Neither party brought assets to the marriage. Two children were born into the marriage. On February 22,1991, Stephen filed a petition for dissolution. The parties’ only disputes in this case concern the value of Stephen’s stock in the honey business and the award of attorney fees to Judith.

At the time of the dissolution, Stephen was 40 years old and had a high school education. Judith was 36 years old, had a high school education, and had attended a vo-tech school for one year. Throughout their marriage, Judith was primarily responsible for raising the children and maintaining the home. She worked part-time as a waitress and worked in the family honey business. For the past three years, she was employed by the United States Forest Service, earning approximately $13,750 a year.

In 1982, Stephen’s parents formed Taylor Honey, Inc., for the purpose of producing honey. Stephen worked in the business throughout the marriage. It is undisputed that over the years [125]*125Stephen’s parents gifted stock in the business to Stephen and his brother for estate planning purposes. Stephen received a total of 8969 shares, or 25.9 percent of the corporate stock. Stephen never received any dividends from the stock and earns a yearly salary of approximately $27,000. Only Stephen, his parents, and his brother are shareholders in the business. Stephen and his brother actually run the day-to-day affairs of the business, while the parents work as advisors. At the time of trial, Stephen was president of the corporation.

At trial, Stephen testified that the stock he received was worthless. Stephen’s father testified with some uncertainty that the value of the corporation ranged from $250,000 to $800,000. Both Stephen and his father testified as to their future business concerns regarding government regulations, and troubles with mites and African bees which could affect the viability of the business.

On the other hand, Stephen’s expert testified that the net value of the business was between $458,878 and $646,878. He discounted Stephen’s share of the stock by 20 percent because it was a minority share, and valued the stock from $95,000 to $134,033. Judith’s expert witness valued the business between $900,000 to $950,000 and valued the stock between $230,000 to $245,000. Financial statements entered into evidence valued the business over the last five years between $1,000,000 and $1,400,000.

In its decree, the District Court valued the corporation at approximately $917,000. The court concluded that as a result, Stephen’s 25.9 percent share of stock amounted to $237,500. The court determined that the stock was marital property and awarded Judith a $109,483 cash settlement for her share of the marital estate. The court allowed Stephen the option of paying Judith’s share of the marital estate in a cash settlement of four annual installments of $25,000 each, with 10 percent interest and $25,000 down. The court allowed Judith to encumber Stephen’s stock if the need arises. The court allowed Stephen to offset his payments on the parties’ home mortgage against the $109,483. The court also ordered Stephen to pay Judith’s attorney fees. Stephen appeals the decree.

I.

Was the District Court’s division of the stock clearly erroneous?

Our standard of review regarding the division of the marital estate has recently changed to the following:

In the past, this Court has employed an abuse of discretion stand[126]*126ard in reviewing a lower court’s determination of the appropriate division of the marital estate. This Court has recently clarified that our standard of review in regard to the factual findings of the district court relating to the division of marital property is whether the district court’s findings are clearly erroneous.

In re Marriage of Danelson (Mont. 1992), 253 Mont. 310, 833 P.2d 215, 219, 49 St. Rep. 597, 599.

Section 40-4-202(l)(a)-(b), MCA, requires the court to consider the nonmonetary contributions of a spouse when dividing the marital estate and whether such contributions facilitated the maintenance of the property. The statute also mandates that the court examine whether the division of the marital estate serves as an alternative to maintenance. Section 40-4-202(l)(c), MCA.

Stephen contends that he did not make monetary contributions to the stock, nor did he facilitate the maintenance of the stock. He contends that, as a result, it would have been impossible for Judith to contribute to the value of the stock, and the stock should not be included as part of the marital property. We disagree.

There is substantial evidence to support the court’s finding that both Stephen and Judith contributed to the maintenance of the honey business stock. Stephen is a minority shareholder in the company with only four employees. He works 16 hour days, seven days a week, in making the business a going concern. Stephen also takes the bees to California in the fall of each year for approximately two months to pollinate certain crops. In addition, he is the president of the company.

Judith’s contributions were of equal importance. She maintained the household and took care of the children for 17½ years. The record reflects that on occasion she also worked for the company. Judith’s nonmonetary contributions as a homemaker facilitated the maintenance of the honey business because Stephen would not have been able to devote the considerable time and effort the business required were it not for Judith’s caring for the children and the home. The court did not grant Judith a maintenance award and the division of the marital property served as an alternative to maintenance. We hold that the District Court’s division of the marital property was not clearly erroneous.

II.

Was the District Court’s valuation of Stephen’s shares of stock clearly erroneous?

Stephen attacks the District Court valuation of the honey [127]*127business stock at $237,500. In our review of a district court’s valuation of marital property, we have established several principles which guide us. When there is a dispute over property in a marriage dissolution, the district court may assign any value that is within the range of values presented into evidence. In re Marriage of Kramer (1987), 229 Mont. 476,747 P.2d 865.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

Marriage of Frank
2022 MT 179 (Montana Supreme Court, 2022)
In Re the Marriage of Clark
2015 MT 263 (Montana Supreme Court, 2015)
In Re the Marriage of Caras
2012 MT 25 (Montana Supreme Court, 2012)
In Re the Marriage of Bartsch
2007 MT 136 (Montana Supreme Court, 2007)
In Re the Marriage of Crilly
2005 MT 311 (Montana Supreme Court, 2005)
In Re the Marriage of Haberkern
2004 MT 29 (Montana Supreme Court, 2004)
Marriage of Danbrook
2001 MT 12N (Montana Supreme Court, 2001)
Schmieding v. Schmieding
2000 MT 237 (Montana Supreme Court, 2000)
In Re the Marriage of Hanni
2000 MT 59 (Montana Supreme Court, 2000)
Marriage of Harper v. Harper
1999 MT 321 (Montana Supreme Court, 1999)
Marriage of Debuff
1999 MT 278N (Montana Supreme Court, 1999)
Marriage of Gauf
Montana Supreme Court, 1997
Marriage of Torgerson
Montana Supreme Court, 1995
In Re the Marriage of Kovash
893 P.2d 860 (Montana Supreme Court, 1995)
In Re the Marriage of McNellis
885 P.2d 412 (Montana Supreme Court, 1994)
In Re the Marriage of Kimm
861 P.2d 165 (Montana Supreme Court, 1993)
In Re the Marriage of Taylor
848 P.2d 478 (Montana Supreme Court, 1993)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
848 P.2d 478, 257 Mont. 122, 50 State Rptr. 186, 1993 Mont. LEXIS 45, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/in-re-the-marriage-of-taylor-mont-1993.