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****************************************************** The ``officially released'' date that appears near the beginning of each opinion is the date the opinion will be published in the Connecticut Law Journal or the date it was released as a slip opinion. The operative date for the beginning of all time periods for filing postopinion motions and petitions for certification is the ``officially released'' date appearing in the opinion. In no event will any such motions be accepted before the ``officially released'' date. All opinions are subject to modification and technical correction prior to official publication in the Connecticut Reports and Connecticut Appellate Reports. In the event of discrepancies between the electronic version of an opinion and the print version appearing in the Connecticut Law Journal and subsequently in the Connecticut Reports or Connecticut Appellate Reports, the latest print version is to be considered authoritative. The syllabus and procedural history accompanying the opinion as it appears on the Commission on Official Legal Publications Electronic Bulletin Board Service and in the Connecticut Law Journal and bound volumes of official reports are copyrighted by the Secretary of the State, State of Connecticut, and may not be reproduced and distributed without the express written permission of the Commission on Official Legal Publications, Judicial Branch, State of Connecticut. ****************************************************** SANDRA SACHS v. JOEL SACHS (AC 18815) (AC 19255)
Lavery, Spear and Dupont, Js.1 Argued February 23--officially released October 10, 2000 Counsel

Lori Welch-Rubin, for the appellant (defendant). Wesley W. Horton, with whom were Kenneth J. Bartschi and Jessica A. Ballou, certified legal intern, and, on the brief, Susan M. Cormier and Richard L. Goldblatt, for the appellee (plaintiff).
Opinion

SPEAR, J. These two appeals arise from a marriage dissolution action. In appeal No. 18815 (pension appeal), the defendant, Joel Sachs, claims that the trial court improperly construed the property award provisions of the parties' dissolution agreement to allow the plaintiff, Sandra Sachs, one third of the defendant's future pension benefits that are attributable solely to the defendant's work after the date of the dissolution. The challenged future pension benefits are one third of all postdissolution deposits made to the defendant's

retirement plans and the earnings thereon. In appeal No. 19255 (attorney's fees appeal), the defendant claims that the trial court improperly awarded attorney's fees to the plaintiff to defend this appeal. We affirm the judgment of the trial court. The following facts are relevant to the resolution of these appeals. On April 13, 1983, the parties executed a separation agreement (agreement) that the trial court incorporated by reference into the dissolution decree. The parties subsequently filed a series of postjudgment motions seeking to clarify whether the parties intended to divide the defendant's future pension benefits accruing after the court rendered the judgment dissolving the marriage. The defendant filed a motion for order pursuant to paragraph three2 of the agreement, seeking the entry of a proposed qualified domestic relations order (QDRO) that would have excluded from the agreement all annual contributions made by his employer for his work postdissolution. The plaintiff filed a motion to compel the defendant to draft a QDRO requiring the defendant to pay to the plaintiff one third of his present and future pension benefits in accordance with the agreement that was incorporated into the dissolution decree. The court, after a hearing, ruled that the defendant's QDRO did not comply with the April 13, 1983 dissolution judgment. It further ordered the defendant to submit to the plaintiff ``appropriate [QDRO's] transferring to the plaintiff one third of his present and future interest in the [pension plan]. Said transfer to include contributions to both plans from date of judgment (4/13/83) to date of retirement.'' The facts relevant to the attorney's fees appeal are as follows. The plaintiff moved for attorney's fees to defend the present appeal, requesting a total of $15,000. The plaintiff's appellate counsel required a $10,000 retainer, and her trial counsel required a $5000 retainer to consult on the appeal. The court found that ``the defendant was evasive [about] disclosing his financial status, that he has in excess of one million dollars in liquid assets and continues to earn an annual income of approximately $210,000.'' The court also found that the plaintiff had recently inherited some money, but that it would be significantly diminished after distribution to beneficiaries and after payment for the administration of the estate. Also, the court found that the plaintiff was unemployed. The court ordered the defendant to pay to the plaintiff's appellate counsel the sum of $7500. I In the pension appeal, the defendant claims that the court improperly construed the parties' dissolution agreement as providing that the plaintiff was entitled to one third of the defendant's pension benefits that were attributable solely to his work performance after the date of the dissolution. Specifically, the defendant claims that (1) the court's interpretation is contrary to

the intent of the parties, as expressed in paragraphs three and twenty of the agreement,3 to limit all property awards to that which the court could have ordered pursuant to General Statutes

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Connecticut Law