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White v. Sargent6/2/2005
- that "there is no genuine issue as to any material fact and . . . the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law." Super. Ct. Civ. R. 56 (c). The moving party has the initial burden of demonstrating that there are no material facts in dispute and that it is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. Wyman v. Roesner, 439 A.2d 516, 519 (D.C. 1981). "Once the movant has made a prima facie showing, however, the opposing party, to prevail, must rebut with specific evidence." Id. (citations omitted); accord, e.g., Kibunja v. Alturas, L.L.C., 856 A.2d 1120, 1127-1128 (D.C. 2004).
Appellants argue that the trial court erred when it granted summary judgment in favor of Mrs. Sargent. In particular, they maintain that genuine issues of material fact exist regarding Mr. Sargent's motive and intent in creating the trust, and that the trial court erred in its application of the factors discussed in Windsor v. Leonard, 154 U.S. App. D.C. 348, 475 F.2d 932 (1973).
A. Concealing Assets
The trial court found that "Mr. Sargent took pains to shield his assets to avoid paying alimony while his second divorce was pending." In determining that he acted with fraudulent intent, the court looked to his credibility, noting that, although he had twice denied under oath that he had substantial assets, "the very existence of the trust valued at approximately $543,000 diminishes Mr. Sargent's credibility as to his financial status." The court also noted that Mr. Sargent was "known to have 'unclean hands' in the past," citing his misrepresentations about his assets in the original divorce proceeding. Thus the court concluded that Mr. Sargent "lacked good faith in establishing the trust."
Even when the evidence is viewed in the light most favorable to the appellants, the trial court did not err in so holding. The record reveals that, during the first divorce proceeding in the early 1990s, Mr. Sargent denied ownership of assets totaling approximately $460,000, and the court at that time (in 1994) found that he did in fact own those funds, that he had "deliberately divested himself of those assets on paper," and that his testimony regarding those assets was "neither credible nor supported by the record evidence." In fact, Mr. Sargent conveniently claimed ownership of those assets in 1992, when he signed an affidavit of support so that Mrs. Sargent could enter the United States from her native country, the Philippines. Mr. Sargent again denied ownership of those assets in 1998, however, during the second divorce proceeding. The judge in that case also found that Mr. Sargent had "significant assets from which he earn additional income above the amount he reported to the court." Appellants presented no evidence to rebut these findings, though they contest them on appeal. " ere conclusory allegations or denials," however, are insufficient to defeat a motion for summary judgment. Chang v. Institute for Public-Private Partnerships, 846 A.2d 318, 323 (D.C. 2004); accord, e.g., Musa v. Continental Insurance Co., 644 A.2d 999, 1002 (D.C. 1994).
Ms. White nevertheless claims that "there were material facts in dispute which demanded a full evidentiary hearing" to determine Mr. Sargent's motive and intent in setting up the trust. She argues that the trial judge based his finding that Mr. Sargent intended to conceal his assets "upon his misinterpretation of the Domestic Relations record . . . ." Specifically, she claims that "there was no outstanding litigation over alimony," and thus it was error for the judge to determine that Mr. Sargent sought to avoid paying alimony by concealing his assets from the court since alimony was not at issue. This is simply incorrect. Mrs. Sargent's May
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