Posted by Nydia Streets of Streets Law in Florida Divorce
The distinction between marital assets and non-marital assets in a Florida divorce is important because it determines what assets a spouse will keep and/or what payments need to be made from one spouse to the other to equalize the distribution. In the case Street v. Street, 2D18-283 (Fla. 2d DCA September 30, 2020), the trial court’s equitable distribution determination resulted in the former husband being ordered to pay almost $1 million to the former wife.
The parties were married for almost 8 years by the time a petition for dissolution of marriage was filed. Neither party worked during the marriage and the family was supported by the former husband’s passive income and funds from his non-marital accounts, along with loans from his father. Ultimately, the trial court entered a final judgment which found certain bank accounts, stocks, vehicles and a boat slip to be marital assets. The former husband contended they were his separate, non-marital assets and appealed the trial court’s determination that he should pay the former wife an equalizing payment of $952,962.00.
The appellate court analyzed the specific assets the former husband contended were his separate property. With regard to the accounts, the court held with regard to two of them: “There was no evidence that these accounts had been commingled with marital funds. [. . .] As such, these accounts should have been classified as nonmarital.” As to two accounts that were opened during the marriage, the appellate court found these to be non-marital since “these accounts were funded by the husband's nonmarital accounts. The wife admitted that she did not put any marital funds into any of these accounts. Additionally, the husband's expert did a full tracing of [two of the accounts] and testified that no marital deposits were made into these accounts. Because these accounts only contained assets that were acquired by the husband prior to the marriage and there was no evidence of commingling, these accounts should have been classified as nonmarital.” Regarding one account that was opened during the marriage, the court held, “However, the trial court properly concluded that the husband failed to meet his burden in proving that [the account] was a nonmarital asset. The husband testified that this account was opened prior to the marriage. However, his expert testified that it was opened during the marriage and that it was fully funded by one of the husband's nonmarital accounts. The wife's expert was unsure whether to classify this account as marital or nonmarital because no statement was provided for this account. Given the conflicting testimony between the husband and his expert as to when the account was opened, the husband failed to meet his burden to prove that this account was nonmarital.”
The appellate court reached a similar conclusion regarding the former husband’s stock account, holding “The husband acquired stock in these companies prior to the marriage, and there was no evidence of enhancement or commingling or that they were given to the wife as a gift.” Vehicles that had been misclassified by the trial court as marital were also restored to their non-marital status by the appellate court. Other vehicles were held to be marital, however, because “the husband failed to meet his burden to prove that the 2012 Mini Cooper, the 2012 Ford, and the 2010 Greyhawk Mini were nonmarital assets. These vehicles were acquired during the marriage, and there was either no testimony or inconclusive testimony as to what account was used to purchase these vehicles.” Finally with regard to the boat slip, the court found that because it was purchased with funds from a non-marital account, it was a non-marital asset.
Mistakes can be made by the court in classifying marital and non-marital assets. This is why it may be important to have a Miami divorce lawyer assisting you. Schedule a consultation to determine how the law may apply to your case.