Porter v. Porter

769 A.2d 725, 61 Conn. App. 791, 2001 Conn. App. LEXIS 72
CourtConnecticut Appellate Court
DecidedFebruary 13, 2001
DocketAC 19595
StatusPublished
Cited by30 cases

This text of 769 A.2d 725 (Porter v. Porter) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Connecticut Appellate Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Porter v. Porter, 769 A.2d 725, 61 Conn. App. 791, 2001 Conn. App. LEXIS 72 (Colo. Ct. App. 2001).

Opinion

[793]*793 Opinion

SCHALLER, J.

The defendant, John Porter, appeals from the judgment of the trial court dissolving his marriage to the plaintiff, Elizabeth B. Porter. On appeal, the defendant claims that the court improperly (1) ordered him to pay time limited alimony for a fourteen year period, (2) determined the value of the parties’ marital home to be $270,000, the defendant’s Saab vehicle to be $4300 and the plaintiffs Plymouth vehicle to be $9490, (3) classified the funds in the defendant’s business and share bank accounts as “property” subject to distribution under General Statutes § 46b-81 and (4) ordered the defendant to maintain life insurance without requiring evidence of the cost or the availability of such insurance to him. We affirm the judgment of the trial court.

The following facts and procedural history are necessary for a proper resolution of this appeal. The plaintiff and the defendant were married on June 13, 1981. Because of a breakdown of their relationship, the plaintiff brought this dissolution action on February 25,1997. The parties have two minor children, ages eight and twelve at the time of trial, bom to them during their marriage.

Before trial began, the parties entered into an agreement in which they disposed of the issues concerning custody, visitation, child support and division of personal property. The parties, however, were unable to reach an agreement regarding alimony and asset distribution.

On April 30, 1999, the court rendered judgment dissolving the parties’ marriage, concluding that it had broken down irretrievably due to the defendant’s adultery. The court also entered orders concerning alimony and asset distribution. With regard to the issues in this appeal, the court ordered that (1) the defendant pay [794]*794time limited alimony in the amount of $400 per week for a fourteen year period, (2) the defendant receive the Saab vehicle, valued at $4300, (3) the plaintiff receive the marital home, valued at $270,000, and the Plymouth vehicle, valued at $9490, and (4) the defendant maintain his then existing life insurance policy in the amount of $350,000, naming the children of the marriage as beneficiaries. This appeal followed. Additional facts will be set forth as they become relevant to the defendant’s claims.

I

The defendant first claims that the court improperly ordered him to pay time limited alimony for a fourteen year period. To advance this claim, the defendant asserts the following three arguments: (1) because the court indirectly linked the time period of alimony to the children’s postmajority education, the time limited alimony here is really a disguise for impermissible child support; (2) the court based its decision as to the time period on speculative evidence; and (3) the court awarded the plaintiff alimony in excess of her request. We are unpersuaded.

The following additional facts are pertinent to the defendant’s claim. During the marriage, the plaintiff sacrificed her career goals to care for the children, and to allow the defendant to complete law school and pursue a career as an attorney. The plaintiff also was forced to abandon her pursuit of obtaining her master’s degree when this action commenced. For her sacrifices, the plaintiff asked the court for time limited alimony in the amount of $400 per week for, at least, a period of ten years. The court awarded the plaintiff’s requested amount per week, but it extended the time period for the alimony to fourteen years. In doing so, the court reasoned that the fourteen year time period represented “a time when the children are likely to have left mother’s [795]*795home and completed their education, giving mother an opportunity to begin a full-time focus on her career and an opportunity to enhance her income at that time.”

Before addressing any of the defendant’s claims, we note that our standard of review in domestic relations cases is limited. “The well settled standard of review in domestic relations cases is that this court will not disturb trial court orders unless the trial court has abused its legal discretion or its findings have no reasonable basis in the facts. ... As has often been explained, the foundation for this standard is that the trial court is in a clearly advantageous position to assess the personal factors significant to a domestic relations case, such as demeanor and attitude of the parties at the hearing. ... In determining whether there has been an abuse of discretion, the ultimate issue is whether the court could reasonably conclude as it did.” Hathaway v. Hathaway, 60 Conn. App. 818, 818-19, 760 A.2d 1280 (2000).

A

The defendant first claims that the court improperly awarded the time limited alimony for a fourteen year period because it linked that time limit to the children’s postmajority education, thereby rendering an impermissible child support award. Stated another way, the defendant argues that the alimony here is actually child support under the guise of alimony. We disagree.

General Statutes § 46b-821 describes circumstances under which a court may award alimony. “The court is [796]*796to consider these factors in making an award of alimony, but it need not give each factor equal weight. ... As long as the trial court considers all of these statutory criteria, it may exercise broad discretion in awarding alimony. . . . The court is empowered, after considering the statutory criteria, to award either time limited alimony or unlimited alimony.” (Citations omitted; internal quotation marks omitted.) Costa v. Costa, 57 Conn. App. 165, 174, 752 A.2d 1106 (2000).

“In particular, rehabilitative alimony, or time limited alimony, is alimony that is awarded primarily for the purpose of allowing the spouse who receives it to obtain further education, training, or other skills necessary to attain self-sufficiency.” Bornemann v. Bornemann, 245 Conn. 508, 539, 752 A.2d 978 (1998).

In the present case, the court’s decision, rendered from the bench, demonstrates that it considered the statutory criteria in deciding to award time limited alimony, namely, to give the plaintiff an opportunity to develop marketable skills. It reasoned that while the children were in college, the alimony would “[give the] mother an opportunity to begin a full-time focus on her career and an opportunity to enhance her income at that time.” Contrary to the defendant’s argument, the court’s reference to the children’s college attendance did not imply that the alimony funds were earmarked for the children’s postmajority support. Rather, the court simply referenced a point at which the mother would have the opportunity to pursue career goals. We cannot conclude, therefore, that the court abused its broad [797]*797discretion by referencing the children’s postmajority education when it awarded the time limited alimony for a fourteen year period.

B

The defendant next claims that the court improperly ordered him to pay time limited alimony for a fourteen year period because the court based its decision on speculative evidence.

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

Related

M. W. v. G. C.
232 Conn. App. 677 (Connecticut Appellate Court, 2025)
Kammili v. Kammili
197 Conn. App. 656 (Connecticut Appellate Court, 2020)
Nuzzi v. Nuzzi
138 A.3d 979 (Connecticut Appellate Court, 2016)
Wood v. Wood
Connecticut Appellate Court, 2015
Anderson v. Anderson
Connecticut Appellate Court, 2015
Callahan v. Callahan
Connecticut Appellate Court, 2015
Cimino v. Cimino
Connecticut Appellate Court, 2015
Pite v. Pite
43 A.3d 229 (Connecticut Appellate Court, 2012)
Fitzsimons v. Fitzsimons
975 A.2d 729 (Connecticut Appellate Court, 2009)
Boyne v. Boyne
962 A.2d 818 (Connecticut Appellate Court, 2009)
Crews v. Crews
945 A.2d 502 (Connecticut Appellate Court, 2008)
City of New Haven v. Tuchmann
890 A.2d 664 (Connecticut Appellate Court, 2006)
Chyung v. Chi Han Chyung
862 A.2d 374 (Connecticut Appellate Court, 2004)
Kunajukr v. Kunajukr
850 A.2d 227 (Connecticut Appellate Court, 2004)
Bee v. Bee
831 A.2d 833 (Connecticut Appellate Court, 2003)
Wawrzynowicz v. Wawrzynowicz, No. Fa01-0122723s (Dec. 20, 2002)
2002 Conn. Super. Ct. 16314 (Connecticut Superior Court, 2002)
Ricciuti v. Ricciuti
810 A.2d 818 (Connecticut Appellate Court, 2002)
Fils-Aime v. Fils-Aime, No. Fa00 0179920 S (Oct. 23, 2002)
2002 Conn. Super. Ct. 13415 (Connecticut Superior Court, 2002)
Glassman v. Glassman, No. Fa00-0176866 S (Oct. 10, 2002)
2002 Conn. Super. Ct. 12854 (Connecticut Superior Court, 2002)
Schneider-Pecoraro v. Schneider, No. Fa 01 0450087 S (May 7, 2002)
2002 Conn. Super. Ct. 5802 (Connecticut Superior Court, 2002)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
769 A.2d 725, 61 Conn. App. 791, 2001 Conn. App. LEXIS 72, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/porter-v-porter-connappct-2001.