IN RE THE MARRIAGE OF JOYCEL YN WOLFE AND DOUGLAS WOLFE Upon the Petition of JOYCELYN WOLFE, Petitioner-Appellee/Cross-Appellant. And Concerning DOUGLAS WOLFE, Respondent-Appellan t/Cross-Appellee.
State: Iowa
Docket No: No. 6-712 / 05-1825
Case Date: 12/13/2006
Preview: IN THE COURT OF APPEALS OF IOWA No. 6-712 / 05-1825 Filed December 13, 2006 IN RE THE MARRIAGE OF JOYCELYN WOLFE AND DOUGLAS WOLFE Upon the Petition of JOYCELYN WOLFE, Petitioner-Appellee/Cross-Appellant. And Concerning DOUGLAS WOLFE, Respondent-Appellant/Cross-Appellee. _____________________________________________________________ Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Cedar County, David E. Schoenthaler, Judge.
Douglas Wolfe appeals and Joycelyn Wolfe cross-appeals from the provisions of the decree dissolving their marriage. AFFIRMED.
Karen Volz of Ackley, Kopecky & Kingery, Cedar Rapids, for appellant. Daniel Bray of Bray & Klockau, P.L.C., Iowa City, for appellee.
Heard by Sackett, C.J., and Zimmer and Eisenhauer, JJ.
2 EISENHAUER, J. Douglas Wolfe appeals from the provisions of the decree dissolving his marriage to Joycelyn (Joy) Wolfe. Douglas contends the district court erred in distributing certain gifted and inherited assets. Joy cross-appeals, alleging the court erred in (1) not awarding her traditional spousal support, (2) valuing the farm, and (3) failing to order Douglas to pay $15,000 of her trial attorney fees. Joy also requests appellate attorney fees. We review the parties' claims de novo. Iowa R. App. P. 6.4.
However, we accord the district court considerable latitude in making an equitable distribution of property and will disturb the ruling only when there has been a failure to do equity. In re Marriage of Spiegel, 553 N.W.2d 309, 319 (Iowa 1996). We give weight to the district court's findings of fact,
especially when considering the credibility of the witnesses, but we are not bound by those findings. Iowa R. App. P. 6.14(6)(g); In re Marriage of
Anliker, 694 N.W.2d 535, 539 (Iowa 2005). Douglas and Joy were married on June 1, 1974, and three children were born of the marriage. The children have all reached the age of majority and there are no issues involving them in this appeal. Following trial, the district court divided the parties' assets and liabilities and awarded property valued at $1,206,885 to Joy and $1,048,660 to Douglas. This resulted in Joy receiving fifty-four percent of the property subject to division and Douglas receiving forty-six percent. Douglas also retained inherited property consisting of three trusts valued at $816,010. The
3 trusts were established by Douglas's parents in 1993, 1997, and 1999, prior to their deaths. Factoring in the inherited property, Douglas received sixtyone percent of the total property and Joy received thirty-nine percent. The district court found this to be a fair and equitable division. Property Division Douglas asserts the district court erred in distributing the law office ($169,828), the AIG Sun-America life insurance policies ($11,176), 100 shares of Mount Vernon Bank stock ($17,400), and the farm ($476,490). Douglas contends this property was either gifted to or inherited by him; therefore, it should have been excluded from the property division. The parties in a marriage are entitled to a just and equitable share of the property accumulated through their joint efforts. In re Marriage of
Russell, 473 N.W.2d 244, 246 (Iowa Ct. App. 1991). The determining factor is what is fair and equitable in each particular circumstance. Id. Property inherited by either party or gifts received by either party prior to or during the course of the marriage is the property of that party and is not subject to a property division under this section except upon a finding that refusal to divide the property is inequitable to the other party or to the children of the marriage. Iowa Code
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