Marriage of Schleich

Summary

Husband hid separate brokerage accounts ($133,763, of which only $25,800 was community), $164,614 of side business income spent before separation, and a $200,000 community loan mostly repaid before separation. The court held that nondisclosure of separate property or of income already spent is not a section 1101 breach, though section 2107 sanctions still apply. It also held that a 50 or 100 percent award under section 1101 replaces the same share in the property division, so the trial court's double counting had to be removed. It upheld permanent spousal support of $6,000, then $2,600 a month, which rested on a 3 percent return imputed to Husband's liquid assets plus his self-employment capacity. The judgment was reversed in part, cutting the section 1101 award by $327,357 and the equalizing payment by $48,950, and the fee award was remanded.

What it means for the financial analysis

Date-of-separation balances and a clear community/separate split drive the exposure: the 50 percent remedy attached to $25,800, not the $133,763 account total. Spent income stops being an asset, so the schedule should show where it went, as the stipulated brokerage statements did when they showed the $148,750 repayment moved to Ecopeds and a zero community balance. On support, the court took Wife's expert's $192,291 balance over Husband's expert's $60,000, which rested on Husband's say-so. It also declined to offset income imputed to Wife's equalizing payment, since nothing showed those funds would be available to invest after she paid her debts.

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