Hall v. Hall (In re Marriage of Hall)

• Decision Date: 10 May 2022
• Docket Number: SD37056
• Parties: In Re the Marriage of: TRACY LYNN HALL and KELLY WAYNE HALL, v. KELLY WAYNE HALL, Respondent-Appellant. TRACY LYNN HALL, Petitioner-Respondent,
• Court: Court of Appeal of Missouri (US)

In Re the Marriage of: TRACY LYNN HALL and KELLY WAYNE HALL,

TRACY LYNN HALL, Petitioner-Respondent,
v.
KELLY WAYNE HALL, Respondent-Appellant.

No. SD37056

Court of Appeals of Missouri, Southern District, First Division

May 10, 2022

APPEAL FROM THE CIRCUIT COURT OF CHRISTIAN COUNTY Honorable Jessica L. Kruse, Associate Circuit Judge.

OPINION

JEFFREY W. BATES, J.

VACATED AND REMANDED WITH DIRECTIONS

Kelly Hall (Husband) appeals from the trial court's judgment in this unusual marriage dissolution action. Husband raises three points. In Points 1 and 2, Husband contends the trial court erred by denying Husband's motions to reopen the evidence. Husband argues that the court should have granted the motions and received evidence that Tracy Hall (Wife) received proceeds from a nonmarital trust while the case was still pending. In Point 3, Husband contends the trial court erred in dividing the marital property

1

because the court failed to consider Wife's change in financial circumstances. Because Points 1 and 2 have merit, we vacate the judgment and remand with directions for further proceedings consistent with this opinion. Given that disposition, it is unnecessary to address Point 3.

Factual and Procedural Background

Wife filed a petition requesting a dissolution of the parties' marriage on January 9, 2017. On June 11, 2018, the trial court dissolved the marriage. Issues relating to division of property and debts remained pending. The trial was conducted on December 17, 2018 and January 3, 2019. At those hearings, the trial court received evidence regarding the parties' property and debts. Wife denied that she had a $400, 000 trust and testified that it belonged to her mother (hereinafter referred to as Trust). Her mother (Mother) was present at the initial hearing. When the January 3^rd hearing concluded, the court took the case under advisement.

Mother died on March 9, 2019, while the case was still pending. On April 3, 2019, Husband filed a motion to reopen the evidence. The motion alleged that, if Wife was a beneficiary of the Trust, the financial positions of the parties could be different than what was proven at trial. Several days later, the trial court denied the motion to reopen the evidence to receive information about the Trust. However, the court, on its own motion, reopened the evidence for counsel to submit a consolidated statement of property and debt pursuant to local rules.

On January 2, 2020, the trial court issued its first statement of marital and nonmarital property and debts. No nonmarital property was set aside to either party. Husband filed motions renewing his request that the court hear evidence about the Trust. These motions alleged, inter alia...