Voukatidis v. Voukatidis

489 N.W.2d 512, 195 Mich. App. 338

• Court: Michigan Court of Appeals
• Decided: August 3, 1992
• Docket: Docket 129640
• Status: Published

Opinions

Griffin, J.

Plaintiff appeals as of right from a May 14, 1990, judgment of divorce entered by the Wayne Circuit Court. We affirm.

Plaintiff first argues on appeal that the trial court abused its discretion in awarding defendant $1,500 in attorney fees. We disagree. Defendant requested $3,500 in fees and was awarded $1,500. Given the substantial disparity in the parties’ incomes, we find no abuse of discretion. Vollmer v Vollmer, 187 Mich App 688, 690; 468 NW2d 236 (1990).

Plaintiff next contends that the trial court made numerous errors that skewed what otherwise would have been a precise fifty-fifty split of the marital estate. Having reviewed the record, we find no merit with regard to any of plaintiff’s claims. Plaintiff’s primary contention, that the trial court somehow twice ordered him to pay defendant one-half of the forty-four shares of Ford Motor Company stock, simply has no basis in fact. The record unequivocally reflects that plaintiff held an additional forty-four shares of stock that were not accounted for initially. Similarly, plaintiff’s claim that the trial court failed to consider the value of a television set he bought for defendant is also without merit. In its findings, the trial court allowed plaintiff to keep the amount of his savings that accrued following the parties’ separation on the basis that plaintiff bought certain items and made various "reasonable expenditures” during this time. Our review also indicates that the court dealt with the value of the parties’ automobiles in an equitable fashion. Finally, given the disparate economic positions of the parties, we find nothing inequitable about requiring plaintiff to maintain defendant’s health insurance on a temporary basis. Plaintiff has in no way convinced us that we would have reached a different result had we occupied the position of the trial court. Burkey v Burkey (On Rehearing), 189 Mich App 72, 78; 471 NW2d 631 (1991).

Finally, plaintiff argues that the trial court abused its discretion in awarding defendant temporary alimony. We disagree. The trial court awarded defendant $200 a week for one year. In so doing, the court noted that the parties had endured many years of marriage during which they lived at the standard provided by their combined incomes. Thus, the court found the alimony necessary to equalize the parties’ financial positions and to allow defendant to "get on her feet financially.” These considerations were proper, and we find no error. Id.; Thames v Thames, 191 Mich App 299, 307-308; 477 NW2d 496 (1991).

Affirmed.

Jansen, P.J., concurred.