Tranchida v. Tranchida, No. Fa93 0521579s (Sep. 19, 1995)

1995 Conn. Super. Ct. 10872
CourtConnecticut Superior Court
DecidedSeptember 19, 1995
DocketNo. FA93 0521579S
StatusUnpublished

This text of 1995 Conn. Super. Ct. 10872 (Tranchida v. Tranchida, No. Fa93 0521579s (Sep. 19, 1995)) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Connecticut Superior Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Tranchida v. Tranchida, No. Fa93 0521579s (Sep. 19, 1995), 1995 Conn. Super. Ct. 10872 (Colo. Ct. App. 1995).

Opinion

[EDITOR'S NOTE: This case is unpublished as indicated by the issuing court.]MEMORANDUM OF DECISION I. The Dissolution of the Marriage

It is found that all of the allegations of plaintiff's complaint have been proven, that the marriage has broken down irretrievably and the marriage is ordered dissolved for that reason.

I A Brief History of the Trial

This originally scheduled six-day trial began as planned on May 22, 1995, continued on May 23, 24 and 25, recessed thereafter until June 13 so that other previously scheduled matters could be disposed of, but as so often happens did not conclude on June 14. The trial continued again on June 19 and 20, resumed again on the next available court date, July 24, recessed again until July 28 so that another scheduled dissolution matter might be heard and finally concluded with final argument on August 1.

The task of the court in "carefully crafting a mosaic" is not made easier when estimates concerning the length of trial are not reasonably accurate.

III. The Construction of the Stipulation of October 13, 1993

By stipulation dated October 13, 1993 both parties, together with their counsel, signed the following agreement:

"STIPULATION FOR DISPOSITION OF HATTERAS MOTOR YACHT

The parties in the above-encaptioned matter respectfully stipulate as to the disposition of their 65' Hatteras motor yacht, hereinafter referred to as "yacht", as follows: CT Page 10873

1. The yacht shall be taken by the defendant to Florida as soon as reasonable for purposes of placing the yacht with a broker for sale.

2. The defendant shall be totally responsible for all of the costs of the transport of the yacht and any costs attributable to the sale of said yacht as well as any other outstanding expenses from the utilization or use of said yacht in the past.

3. The defendant shall give to the plaintiff the sum of $325,000 on or before March 1, 1994 or upon the sale of said yacht, whichever sooner occurs.

4. The defendant at his option shall have the ultimate power to decide upon the sale of the boat at the amount of the sale or whether it should be sold. The division of this asset in this manner is agreed to and stipulated by the parties and shall not be considered by them or the Court as an asset to be further divided in any way between them.

5. It is specifically understood and agreed to by the parties that the other assets of the parties or the rendering of orders for alimony or any other financial orders as of this time are still to be determined by the Court or yet to be agreed to by the parties."

Following the execution of this agreement defendant sailed the boat to Florida where he ultimately sold it for the sum of $794,000. From that amount he paid plaintiff the sum of $325,000, purchased a new boat for $334,000 and, using his old Porsche valued at $10,000 as a down payment, purchased a new one for an additional $30,000.

The parties now disagree as to the manner in which this transaction should be considered by the court.

Defendant quite simply contends that there should be no further division, credits or debits to either party relative to the boat proceeds distribution. Plaintiff's position is not quite so plainly expressed. She notes that the stipulation "fails to address any prohibition on the court's authority to consider this division when dividing the remainder of the assets" and reasons therefrom that "it was the intent of the parties . . . to only limit the court's CT Page 10874 authority to divide this particular marital asset and not to limit in any way this court's authority and power to consider this division in determining the division of the remaining marital assets."

In reaching its conclusion upholding the viewpoint of defendant, the court notes the following black letter rules of contract law: First — "contractual terms are to be given their ordinary meaning, and when the intention conveyed is clear and unambiguous, there is no need for construction."Gino's Pizza of East Hartford Inc. v. Kaplan, 193 Conn. 135,138 (1984). Second — "the circumstances surrounding the making of a contract, the purposes which the parties sought to accomplish and their motives cannot have an intent contrary to the plain meaning of the language used. Zullo v. Smith,179 Conn. 596, 601 (1980).

The stipulation is clear and unambiguous in stating that the agreed upon division of the boat sale proceeds was not to be considered an asset to be further divided by the parties (emphasis added). To interpret this plain, uncomplicated sentence in the manner suggested by plaintiff would serve only to provide a convoluted construction to incomplex phraseology.

This court concludes that the sum of $296,234 remaining from plaintiff's share of the boat proceeds, together with defendant's 40' Tiara boat presently valued at $250,000 shall be excluded from the marital estate of the parties on hand for distribution. In addition, the sum of $30,000 (representing additional boat proceeds) shall be deducted from the value of defendant's Porsche, leaving an adjusted value of $10,000 for distribution purposes.

IV. The Accident Settlement

Derrick, the thirteen-year old son of the parties, died as a result of a car accident in August, 1986. A settlement in the amount of $600,000 was obtained the following year. Plaintiff's testimony on this subject was understandably brief. Defendant's testimony was also quite limited, he indicating that the net proceeds were expended for the purchase of a new home and boat without objection on plaintiff's part. Neither probate records nor any other legal documents customarily associated with such a serious civil matter were introduced by either party. CT Page 10875

The subject appeared to be a non-issue until plaintiff, in her supplemental proposed orders, requested that she receive 40 percent of said sum of $600,000 within 90 days from date of judgment.

On the basis of the extremely minute evidence on this subject presently before the court, it finds that any net proceeds from said settlement were expended for family purposes and are included in the present marital estate on hand for distribution.

V. The Resolution of Disputed Values of Real Estate

Dean C. Amidon, a commercial real estate appraiser since 1980, testified on behalf of the plaintiff concerning the fair market value of several parcels of real estate owned by the defendant. He has held an M.A.I. designation since 1990, has done twenty appraisals a month for the past ten years, has completed appraisals for all the major insurance companies and was found to be an expert in his field.

Peter R. Marsele, also a qualified real estate appraiser who has appeared before this court on countless past occasions, testified on behalf of the defendant as to the fair market value of his various real estate holdings.

David Walsh, also a qualified real estate appraiser who had appraised several parcels of defendant's real estate on behalf of the plaintiff in March, 1994, was also called to testify by defendant's counsel.

The opinions of the above appraisers relating to the various parcels owned by defendant and the conclusions of the court on each are set forth in detail as follows:

A. #47 Main Street, New Britain, CT.

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Related

Zullo v. Smith
427 A.2d 409 (Supreme Court of Connecticut, 1980)
Gino's Pizza of East Hartford, Inc. v. Kaplan
475 A.2d 305 (Supreme Court of Connecticut, 1984)
Citicorp Mortgage, Inc. v. D'Avanzo
626 A.2d 800 (Connecticut Appellate Court, 1993)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
1995 Conn. Super. Ct. 10872, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/tranchida-v-tranchida-no-fa93-0521579s-sep-19-1995-connsuperct-1995.