Waite v. Waite

21 S.W.3d 48, 2000 Mo. App. LEXIS 783, 2000 WL 663179
CourtMissouri Court of Appeals
DecidedMay 23, 2000
DocketED 76161
StatusPublished
Cited by20 cases

This text of 21 S.W.3d 48 (Waite v. Waite) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Missouri Court of Appeals primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Waite v. Waite, 21 S.W.3d 48, 2000 Mo. App. LEXIS 783, 2000 WL 663179 (Mo. Ct. App. 2000).

Opinion

ROBERT G. DOWD, Jr., Judge.

Louis Edward Waite, Jr. (Husband) appeals from the trial court’s judgment dissolving his marriage to Jane Kevin Waite (Wife). Husband argues the trial court erred in (1) declaring the primary residence to be marital property and awarding it to Wife, (2) awarding Husband $20,723 for his separate share of his individual retirement account (IRA), (3) ordering Husband to pay $750 per month in child support, and (4) awarding Wife $1,000 per *51 month in maintenance. We affirm in part and reverse and remand in part.

Husband and Wife were married on March 23, 1991. Husband and Wife had one child, born October 5, 1991. Husband and Wife separated on July 5, 1998, and the marriage was dissolved on March 15, 1999.

The trial court dissolved the marriage and awarded Husband and Wife joint physical and joint legal custody of their child. After finding the Form 14 amount to be unjust and inappropriate, the trial court ordered Husband to pay $750 per month in child support. The court ordered the child to be covered under Husband’s health plan. The court also ordered the Husband to pay Wife $1,000 per month in maintenance until either Husband or Wife died or until Wife remarried.

The trial court awarded separate property to Husband and Wife. Wife was awarded her separate property consisting of stock, part of her life insurance, and her jewelry. Husband was awarded his separate property consisting of a real estate lot, a roll top desk, and part of his IRA. Wife was awarded the primary residence with its corresponding mortgage debt. The trial court awarded marital property to Husband and Wife. Wife was awarded a car; a checking account; the marital portion of her life insurance; one-half of the household furniture, furnishings and fixtures; and the entire marital amount of Husband’s 401(k) Plan. Husband was awarded a car; a savings and checking account; his life insurance policy; one-half of the household furniture, furnishings and fixtures; and the entire marital portion of his IRA.

The trial court also allocated Husband and Wife’s debt. Husband’s debt was the debt on his Visa bill, an unpaid dental bill, an unpaid roof bill, and an unpaid optical bill. The remaining debt incurred prior to February 18, 1999, was allocated 44% to Wife and 56% to Husband. Husband appeals the trial court’s judgment.

In reviewing a decree of dissolution, the decision of the trial court will be affirmed unless there is no substantial evidence to support it, unless it is against the weight of the evidence, unless it erroneously declares the law, or unless it erroneously applies the law. Murphy v. Carrón, 536 S.W.2d 30, 32 (Mo. banc 1976); Kettler v. Kettler, 884 S.W.2d 729, 731 (Mo.App. E.D.1994). The division of marital property is discretionary with the trial court and we must defer to the court’s judgment unless it is an abuse of discretion. Kettler, 884 S.W.2d at 731. We presume the order to be correct, and the party challenging the division on appeal has the burden of overcoming the presumption. Id. A judgment should be set aside with caution and only on a firm belief that the judgment is wrong. Panettiere v. Panettiere, 945 S.W.2d 533, 538 (Mo.App. W.D.1997).

In his first point, Husband argues the trial court erred in declaring the primary residence to be marital property and awarding it to Wife. Husband argues awarding the house to Wife was an abuse of discretion because he purchased the house before the marriage, and Wife testified that she did not want the house. We disagree.

Once separate property is placed in the joint names of the spouses, it is deemed a gift to the other spouse and is transmuted into marital property. Id. at 732. This presumption is rebutted by clear and convincing evidence to the contrary. Id.

Here, the marital residence was purchased by Husband prior to the marriage and then refinanced and titled jointly in the names of Husband and Wife. The house is presumed to be marital property, and Husband has the burden to show a gift was not intended. Wife’s testimony at trial indicates that she was not asking for the house in the divorce because she had been told by Husband and attorneys that she could not have the house. Husband has failed to provide any other evidence that *52 he did not give one-half of the house to Wife. We find there was not clear and convincing evidence to rebut the presumption that the house was transmuted into marital property. Point denied.

In his second point, Husband argues the trial court erroneously applied the law in awarding Husband only $20,723 for his separate share of his IRA. Wife argues this point is moot because Husband was awarded the entire marital portion of the IRA.

Appreciation in value of an IRA is divided in proportion to the marital and non-marital portions of the original investment under Section 452.330(2)(5). Coughlin v. Coughlin, 823 S.W.2d 73, 75 (Mo.App. E.D.1991). The income from separate property acquired during the marriage does not fall within any of the excluded categories of Section 452.330.2 and is marital property. Wilhelm v. Wilhelm, 688 S.W.2d 381, 383 (Mo.App. E.D.1985). Income is a gain or recurrent benefit usually measured in money that derives from capital or labor or the amount of such gain received in a period of time. Coble v. Coble, 931 S.W.2d 206, 209 (Mo.App. W.D.1996).

Here, additional amounts to the IRA were labeled on the statements as “income dividend,” “capital gain,” and “short term gain”. We find that all of these additions are “income” because they are a gain derived from capital over a period of time. The trial court properly characterized these additions as marital property because they were income during the marriage. Point denied.

In his third point, Husband argues the trial court erred in ordering Husband to pay $750 per month in child support. Husband argues there was not substantial evidence to support the trial court’s Form 14 presumed child support calculations for joint custody. We disagree.

Supreme Court Rule 88.01 establishes a rebuttable presumption that child support calculated pursuant to Form 14 is the amount to be awarded by the trial court. Panettiere, 945 S.W.2d at 540. Rule 88.01 provides:

a rebuttable presumption that the amount of child support calculated pursuant to Civil Procedure Form No. 14 is the amount of child support to be awarded.... It is sufficient in a particular case to rebut the presumption ... if the court or administrative agency enters in the case a written finding or a specific finding on the record that the amount so calculated, after consideration of all the relevant factors, is unjust and inappropriate.

A.J.K. by R.K.

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Bluebook (online)
21 S.W.3d 48, 2000 Mo. App. LEXIS 783, 2000 WL 663179, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/waite-v-waite-moctapp-2000.