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Pittman v. Pittman3/10/2000
Appeal from the District Court of Natrona County The Honorable Dan Spangler, Judge
The primary issue here arises from Appellant Leona Pittma's (the wife) dissatisfaction with what she perceives as an inequitable division of property and debt by the trial court in granting her a divorce from Appellee Theodore Pittman (the husband). The wife contends that the trial court abused its discretion by awarding the husband property worth three times what it awarded to her. Because the Pittmans acquired the property primarily with the husban's premarital assets and the proceeds from a personal injury he suffered, we hold there was no abuse of discretion in the property and debt divisions. The wife also raises issues regarding the trial cour's rulings on motions and an abrupt termination of the trial. Although the trial court erred by halting the trial during the cross-examination of a witness, we hold the error was harmless. We affirm the judgment in all respects.
ISSUES
The wife presents these issues for our review:
I. Whether the district court abused its discretion by terminating the divorce proceeding without affording the parties an opportunity to present their case.
II. Whether the district court abused its discretion in the distribution of the marital property in the divorce action.
III. Whether Appellant was prejudiced by the failure of the trial court to enforce her right to receive temporary maintenance during the pendency of the action.
IV. Whether the division of the University Medical Center debt was made in error.
FACTS
The Pittman' marriage began on February 20, 1985. Although they each had children from previous marriages, they did not have any together. Within a few years, each party filed individually for bankruptcy and received a discharge of debts. The bankruptcy not only left the parties debt free, but it also left them with little personal property and no real property.
In 1989, the husband was seriously injured in an accident. The resultant lawsuit included the husban's injury claims and the wif's claim for loss of consortium. The Pittmans ultimately accepted a settlement which gave them net proceeds of $143,560.44. They used the settlement money and some other assets to buy real properties that they upgraded and rented or sold on contracts for deed.
The wife filed a complaint for divorce on January 20, 1998. The parties reached a stipulation by which they agreed to sell one of their Casper properties. The proceeds were to be used to pay off marital debts with any remainder to be split between the parties. The stipulation further provided that the husband would pay the wife $600 per month for temporary maintenance. In a second stipulation, the parties agreed that neither of them would sell any other property, incur new debts, or remove funds from bank accounts beyond what was necessary for normal living expenses.
Each party soon accused the other of violating the stipulations, and they requested contempt citations. The trial court reserved ruling on the motions for contempt until after the trial. On July 17, 1998, the trial court convened a half-day bench trial as requested by the parties. Although the wife had at least one nonparty witness present, the only witnesses actually called were the parties. The trial court adjourned during the cross-examination of the husband when the allotted time expired. The record does not show that either party objected to the adjournment. Both parties submitted written closing arguments. The trial court issued a decision letter the following week, awarding the husband most of the property. This appeal fo
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