Aundreia Dant v. Anthony J. Dant (mem. dec.) ( 2015 )

MEMORANDUM DECISION
Pursuant to Ind. Appellate Rule
65(D), this Memorandum Decision
shall not be regarded as precedent or Oct 30 2015, 8:46 am
cited before any court except for the
purpose of establishing the defense of
res judicata, collateral estoppel, or the
law of the case.
ATTORNEY FOR APPELLANT ATTORNEY FOR APPELLEE
Karen A. Wyle David A. Smith
Bloomington, Indiana McIntyre & Smith
Bedford, Indiana
IN THE
COURT OF APPEALS OF INDIANA
Aundreia Dant, October 30, 2015
Appellant-Petitioner, Court of Appeals Case No.
51A01-1504-DR-128
v. Appeal from the Martin Circuit
Court
Anthony J. Dant, The Honorable Gregory A. Smith,
Appellee-Respondent. Special Judge
Trial Court Cause No.
51C01-1310-DR-250
May, Judge.
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[1] Aundreia Dant (“Wife”) appeals the division of marital property in the
dissolution of her marriage to Anthony Dant (“Husband”). Finding no abuse
of discretion, we affirm.
Facts and Procedural History
[2] Husband and Wife married in 1991 and the marriage was dissolved in 2014.
Husband has served with the Martin County Sheriff’s Department since 1985
and was the elected sheriff from 2003 through 2010. As elected sheriff,
Husband earned about $85,000 per year. Afterwards his income decreased to
about $32,000 as chief deputy, and then to about $28,000 as a patrol deputy,
which was his position at the time of the dissolution hearing. Wife has been
employed by General Motors since 1992 and since 2010 her annual earnings
have been around $100,000.
[3] Both parties had pension plans, the value of which they stipulated. Husband’s
was valued at about $1,100,000 and at the time of the dissolution he was
drawing about $5000 per month. He also had a deferred compensation plan
valued at about $112,000 and an IRA valued at about $107,000. Wife’s GM
pension was valued at about $117,000, but she cannot draw from it until she
retires. At the time of the dissolution hearing she was forty-seven and she
cannot retire until she is fifty-five. Wife also had a savings plan she
characterized as a 401K, which was valued at about $293,000.
[4] The parties owned four parcels of real estate. Two, including the marital
residence, were awarded to Wife and the other two to Husband.
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[5] The trial court allocated 69% of the net marital estate to Husband and 31% to
Wife, but noted that “when assets husband had prior to the marriage . . . are
excluded, the division is approximately 53% to husband and 47% to wife.”
(App. at 26.) Additional facts will be provided as necessary.
Discussion and Decision
[6] The division of marital property is within the sound discretion of the trial court,
and we will reverse only for an abuse of discretion. Love v. Love, 10 N.E.3d
1005, 1012 (Ind. Ct. App. 2014). An abuse of discretion occurs if the trial
court’s decision is clearly against the logic and effect of the facts and
circumstances before the court, or if the trial court has misinterpreted the law or
disregarded evidence of factors listed in the controlling statute. Id. When we
review a claim that the trial court improperly divided marital property, we
consider only the evidence most favorable to the trial court’s disposition of the
property. Id. Even if the facts and reasonable inferences might allow for a
different conclusion, we will not substitute our judgment for that of the trial
court. Id.[7] Division of marital property is highly fact sensitive and we review a trial court’s
discretion in dividing marital property by considering the division as a whole,
not item by item. Id. We will not weigh evidence, but will consider the
evidence in a light most favorable to the judgment. Id. The party challenging
the division of marital property must overcome a strong presumption that the
court considered and complied with the applicable statute. Id. at 1012-13.
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Thus, we will reverse a property distribution only if there is no rational basis for
the award. Id. at 1013.
[8] All marital property goes into the marital pot for division, whether it was
owned by either spouse before the marriage, acquired by either spouse after the
marriage and before final separation of the parties, or acquired by their joint
efforts. Id. (citing Ind. Code § 31-15-7-4(a)). This “one-pot” theory ensures that
all assets are subject to the trial court’s power to divide and award. Id.[9] An equal division of marital property is presumed to be just and reasonable, but
this presumption may be rebutted if a party presents relevant evidence regarding
the following factors: (1) each spouse’s contribution to the acquisition of
property; (2) acquisition of property through gift or inheritance prior to the
marriage; (3) the economic circumstances of each spouse at the time of
disposition; (4) each spouse’s dissipation or disposition of property during the
marriage; and (5) each spouse’s earning ability. Id. (citing Ind. Code § 31-15-7-
5). When ordering an unequal division, the trial court must consider all of the
factors set forth in the statute. Id. A trial court abuses its discretion in
considering a factor in isolation from the other four factors, but it is not
required to explicitly address each factor. Id. However, on review we must be
able to infer from the trial court’s findings that all the statutory factors were
considered. Id.Court of Appeals of Indiana | Memorandum Decision 51A01-1504-DR-128 | October 30, 2015 Page 4 of 11
[10] The trial court entered Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law sua sponte. 1 In
such a situation, the specific factual findings control only the issues they cover,
and a general judgment standard applies to issues on which there are no
findings. Stone v. Stone, 991 N.E.2d 992, 998 (Ind. Ct. App. 2013), aff’d on reh’g,
4 N.E.3d 666 (Ind. Ct. App. 2013). It is not necessary that each and every
finding be correct, and even if one or more findings are clearly erroneous, we
may affirm the judgment if it is supported by other findings or is otherwise
supported by the record. Id. We may affirm a general judgment with sua sponte
findings on any legal theory supported by the evidence introduced at trial. Id.Although sua sponte findings control as to the issues on which the court has
found, they do not otherwise affect our general judgment standard of review,
and we may look both to other findings and beyond the findings to the evidence
of record to determine if the result is against the facts and circumstances before
the court. Id.[11] As for review of the accuracy of findings that have been entered, we first
consider whether the evidence supports them. Id. Second, we consider whether
the findings support the judgment. Id. We will disregard a finding only if it is
clearly erroneous, which means the record contains no facts to support it either
directly or by inference. Id. A judgment also is clearly erroneous if it relies on
1
The parties disagree as to whether the findings and conclusions were entered pursuant to a Trial Rule 52
motion or sua sponte. At the dissolution hearing the trial court referred to a motion for findings, and
Husband’s counsel said, “We apologize, Your Honor. We really meant proposed decrees.” (Tr. at 115.) We
will accordingly review the judgment as if the findings and conclusions were entered sua sponte.
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an incorrect legal standard, and we do not defer to a trial court’s legal
conclusions. Id. at 998-99.
Wife’s Contributions to Husband’s Pension
[12] The trial court awarded all of Wife’s pension and employer profit-sharing plan
to her, and it awarded all of Husband’s pension, deferred compensation plan
funds, and IRA to him. Wife argues the trial court erred because it ignored
evidence of her “monetary and nonmonetary contributions to the accrual of
Husband’s pensions.” (Br. of Appellant at 14.) We cannot find an abuse of
discretion.
[13] Wife states “[i]t is presumed that where the parties were married while one
accumulated pension eligibility, that pension was acquired through joint
efforts,” citing as authority for that statement Elkins v. Elkins, 763 N.E.2d 482,
485 (Ind. Ct. App. 2002). (Br. of Appellant at 14) (emphasis added). She next
asserts “[t]he presumption that spouses contribute to each others’ pensions is so strong”
that even pensions vesting after legal separation are treated as marital property.
(Br. of Appellant at 14) (citing In re Marriage of Adams, 535 N.E.2d 124, 127
(Ind. 1989), reh’g denied).
[14] Neither Elkins nor Adams establishes, or even acknowledges, a legal
“presumption” that a spouse contributes to the other spouse’s pension or that a
spouse’s pension is “presumed” to have been acquired through the spouses’
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joint efforts. 2 We must therefore decline to reverse on the ground there was a
legal presumption in Wife’s favor that Husband was obliged to rebut.
[15] We acknowledge the evidence to which Wife directs us regarding her monetary
and non-monetary contributions to the marriage, but we are aware of no
authority supporting the premise the trial court was required to consider those
contributions to be “contributions to the accrual of Husband’s pension.” (Br. of
Appellant at 14.) 3 As we will not substitute our judgment for that of the trial
court even if the facts and reasonable inferences might allow for a different
conclusion, Love, 10 N.E.3d at 1012, we cannot reverse on that ground.
The Family Farm
[16] There were four pieces of real estate included in the marital estate. The marital
home and a rental property were awarded to Wife, and a farm and property the
couple bought from Husband’s mother’s estate were awarded to Husband.
Wife challenges both awards to Husband.
2
Adams says only “[i]t may be reasonably argued that in many marriages the joint efforts of both spouses are
invested so that one of them may earn pension rights.” In re Marriage of Adams, 535 N.E.2d 124, 127 (Ind.
1989). The Adams Court found there was evidence Husband’s pension was acquired by the parties’ joint
efforts, but it did not specify what that evidence was.
3
Wife suggests the trial court should have applied a coverture fraction, but she does not explicitly argue it
was reversible error for the court to decline to do so.
The “coverture fraction” formula is one method a trial court may use to distribute pension or retirement
plan benefits to the earning and non-earning spouses. Under this methodology, the value of the retirement
plan is multiplied by a fraction, the numerator of which is the period of time during which the marriage
existed (while pension rights were accruing) and the denominator of which is the total period of time during
which pension rights accrued. In re Marriage of Preston, 704 N.E.2d 1093, 1098 n.6 (Ind. Ct. App. 1999). As
the trial court did not abuse its discretion in allocating the pensions as it did, it was not obliged to apply a
coverture fraction.
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[17] Wife argues the trial court’s allocation of property referred to as “the family
farm” was an abuse of discretion 4 because its findings regarding the farm “ran
largely or entirely counter to the undisputed evidence.” (Br. of Appellant at
18.) The trial court awarded the farm to Husband after concluding it was
purchased before the marriage with Husband’s resources, Wife did not work on
the farm or contribute to its upkeep, and Husband did not place Wife’s name on
the deed.
[18] The trial court heard testimony from Wife that Husband bought the property
shortly before he and Wife started dating. Husband testified he “bought and
paid for it before [Wife] ever entered into the relationship with me.” (Tr. at 82.)
We acknowledge Wife offered ample evidence to the contrary, but we may not
reweigh it or rejudge the credibility of the witnesses. The trial court’s allocation
of the farm was not an abuse of discretion. 5
Property Treated as Inheritance
[19] The trial court allocated to Husband a residence Husband’s mother owned and
that Husband and Wife later bought from his mother’s estate. In making the
4
We remind Wife that a trial court’s disposition of the marital estate is to be considered as a whole, not item
by item. Fobar v. Vonderahe, 771 N.E.2d 57, 59 (Ind. 2002).
5
The trial court’s statement “there was no evidence” Wife worked on the farm or contributed to its upkeep,
(App. at 21), appears incorrect, as Wife testified she did both. However, we decline to reverse on that
ground.
We note the evidence on which Wife relies is her own testimony. It is within the province of the trial court to
believe or disbelieve the testimony of any witness. Inman v. Turner, 27 N.E.3d 771, 774 (Ind. Ct. App. 2014),
trans. denied. We further note Wife offers no legal authority to support the premise the trial court was obliged
to credit her for her contributions to the farm after Husband bought it.
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allocation, the trial court said “while not strictly an inheritance, the said real
property is in the nature of an inheritance from Husband’s family. I.C. 31-15-7-
5(2)(B).” (App. at 21.)
[20] Wife notes the statute the trial court cited, which addresses evidence that can
rebut the presumption an equal division of the marital property is just and
reasonable, refers to “[t]he extent to which the property was acquired by each
spouse . . . through inheritance or gift.” Ind. Code § 31-15-7-5. Because the
statute refers to property acquired by “each spouse,” she argues, it cannot apply
to property purchased by both spouses with marital funds. Therefore, she
argues, “[t]reating this evidentiary factor as relevant to the cited statutory factor
was error and an abuse of discretion.” (Br. of Appellant at 20.)
[21] Even if the trial court erred in its suggestion the property was in the nature of
inherited property, we cannot reverse on that ground. “It is well settled that
when an error did not affect the substantial rights of the complaining party,
such error will be considered harmless and not be grounds for reversal.” Cornett
v. Cornett, 412 N.E.2d 1232, 1236 (Ind. Ct. App. 1980).
[22] Wife asserts, without explanation or citation to the record or to legal authority,
that the trial court “did not award Wife any other marital assets, or relieve her
from any other marital debt, to compensate for this award.” (Br. of Appellant
at 20.) The dissolution decree indicates the property had a fair market value of
$120,000, and mortgage indebtedness of $120,000, both of which we were
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assigned to Husband. We cannot say Wife was prejudiced to the extent the trial
court declined to “compensate” her for that award.
Trial Court’s “Intentions”
[23] As explained above, we find no abuse of discretion in the trial court’s
distribution of the marital assets. Wife does not point to any specific
mathematical errors in that decree, but she appears to argue the trial court “did
not intend such an unequal disposition as it actually imposed.” (Appellant’s
Reply Br. at 13.) We decline to find reversible error on the premise the trial
court did not know what it was doing or intend to do what it did.
[24] The trial court’s decree included a detailed three-page listing of each debt and
asset, what each was worth, and how each was disposed. It calculated the “net
marital estate,” (App. at 31), and indicated 69% was allocated to Husband and
31% to Wife. On a separate line after that, it listed amounts and percentages
Wife characterizes as numbers “purporting to show the percentage each spouse
would have received if the marital estate had not included” certain real estate.
(Br. of Appellant at 21.) Those numbers reflected a percentage distribution of
53% to Husband and 47% to Wife.
[25] We decline to hold the trial court’s intention was reflected by what it did not do
rather than what it did do, and absent a showing of a mathematical
miscalculation, we find no error. See In re Marriage of Perez, 7 N.E.3d 1009,
1012 (Ind. Ct. App. 2014) (Wife’s arguments that the trial court did not give
sufficient weight to the income disparities of the parties and her allegation her
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testimony was more credible than Husband’s were invitations for us to reweigh
the evidence and judge witness credibility, which we cannot do.).
The Parties’ Future Income Streams
[26] The trial court allocated to Husband all of his pension and to Wife all of hers,
and valued each pension at the amount to which the parties stipulated. Wife
now appears to argue error because the trial court made “optimistic
assumptions,” (Br. of Appellant at 23), about her future earning ability, but it
did not make equally optimistic assumptions about Husband. We decline to
find an abuse of discretion in the trial court’s acceptance of the pension values
to which the parties stipulated, nor do we find the trial court’s “assumptions”
necessarily amount to unreasonable inferences the trial court might have drawn
from evidence of Husband’s and Wife’s ages, earning history, and career
prospects. As we will not substitute our judgment for that of the trial court even
if the facts and reasonable inferences might allow for a different conclusion,
Love, 10 N.E.3d at 1012, we decline to reverse on that ground.
Conclusion
[27] As the trial court’s distribution of the marital property was supported by the
record and was not an abuse of discretion, we affirm.
[28] Affirmed.
Crone, J., and Bradford, J., concur.
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