Postema v. Postema - 189 Mich. App. 89, 471 N.W.2d 912 (1991)

Rule:

In divorce proceedings, the existence of a concerted family effort will be reflected in many ways. For instance, it is reflected not only through a spouse's tangible efforts and financial contributions associated with working and supporting the mate while the mate pursues the advanced degree, but also through other intangible, nonpecuniary efforts and contributions, such as where a spouse increases the share of the daily tasks, child-rearing responsibilities, or other details of household and family management undertaken in order to provide the mate with the necessary time and energy to study and attend classes. A concerted family effort is also exemplified by the fact that both spouses typically share in the emotional and psychological burdens of the educational experience. Finally, the attainment of an advanced degree during marriage is usually accompanied by considerable sacrifice on the part of both spouses. For the nonstudent spouse, such sacrifice may be reflected by a change in life style during the educational process, the availability of less time to pursue personal interests, or even a decision to either give up or temporarily postpone one's own educational or career pursuits as part of the larger, long-range plan designed to benefit the family as a whole.

Facts:

A wife supported her husband while he attended law school. The parties moved to another city for the husband's education. The wife postponed her education, took on most of the domestic duties, and the stress of the husband's law school education. The parties separated shortly after the husband's graduation. As part of the divorce action, the trial court valued the husband's law degree and divided it to equalize the property settlement between the parties. Both the husband and wife appealed.

Issue:

Did the trial court err in finding the law degree to be a marital asset?

Answer:

No

Conclusion:

The court remanded the matter to the trial court and held that the trial court had to consider the law degree in a property distribution, not as part of a determination of alimony. However, rather than looking only to the commercial value of the degree, where the degree was the product of a concerted family effort, a trial court had to consider equitable principles. The trial court had to take into account the sacrifices, efforts, and contributions toward attainment of the degree, including the length of marriage after attainment of the degree, the sources and extent of the student's financial support, and the overall division of the marital property.