Holden v. Holden

• Decision Date: 28 February 2007
• Docket Number: No. 20060212.,20060212.
• Citation: 2007 ND 29,728 N.W.2d 312
• Parties: Dennis HOLDEN, Plaintiff and Appellant, v. Linda HOLDEN, Defendant and Appellee.
• Court: North Dakota Supreme Court

728 N.W.2d 312

2007 ND 29

Dennis HOLDEN, Plaintiff and Appellant, v. Linda HOLDEN, Defendant and Appellee.

No. 20060212.

Supreme Court of North Dakota.

February 28, 2007.

Dennis Holden (argued), pro se, plaintiff and appellant.

Sherry Mills Moore (argued), Bismarck, ND, for defendant and appellee.

KAPSNER, Justice.

[¶ 1] Dennis Holden appeals from a divorce judgment, arguing the district court's division of property was inequitably divided in favor of his former wife, Linda Holden. We affirm.

I

[¶ 2] The parties were married in 1979. This was each party's first marriage. The Holdens have three adult children. In 2005, Dennis Holden sued for divorce. The district court held a trial in March 2006. Dennis Holden's proposal at trial was to sell all of the marital assets, pay the parties' debts, and divide the remainder. Linda Holden wanted to keep the real property and personal debt, but give Dennis Holden the businesses' assets and debt associated with them. The parties' primary assets were a parcel of 5.7 acres and two businesses operated on the land. The parties' marital home was also located on the land.

[¶ 3] Before trial, Dennis Holden moved the court for an interim order, asking the district court to allow him exclusive use of the real property. He filed an affidavit assigning values to the real property and the businesses. Linda Holden requested she be temporarily awarded sole use of the house and Dennis Holden be awarded use of the shop located on the property from which the businesses were operated. The district court temporarily awarded Linda Holden the sole use of the house and awarded Dennis Holden the sole use of the shop. Linda Holden was ordered to pay the debts associated with the real property, while Dennis Holden was ordered to provide monthly accountings of the income and expenses of the businesses.

[¶ 4] Both parties filed several pretrial motions and discovery requests. Dennis Holden refused to answer Linda Holden's discovery requests. Linda Holden moved the district court to compel discovery, which was granted. Dennis Holden then moved to modify the interim order, asking the court for sole use of the real property. The district court denied the motion. Dennis Holden moved the court for a continuance so an appraisal could be done on the parties' personal property. The court granted the continuance so a third party could appraise the parties' assets. Dennis Holden's appraisal was not completed in a timely manner and was not presented to the district court. Linda Holden had Wayne Bachmeier, who works as an apprentice appraiser for a general appraisal firm, appraise the value of the real and personal property. Bachmeier's appraisal was reviewed by two certified general appraisers in the firm.

[¶ 5] Linda Holden completed a N.D.R.Ct. 8.3 property and debt listing in accordance with the scheduling order. Dennis Holden completed a partial listing two days before trial. In dividing the parties' assets, the court awarded the parties' real property to Linda Holden, subject to all debts on the property. The district court awarded Dennis Holden net marital assets worth $79,145, plus one-half of whatever is recovered from the bankruptcy attorney, and awarded Linda Holden net marital assets worth $176,470, plus one-half of whatever is recovered from the bankruptcy attorney. The court ordered Linda Holden to pay Dennis Holden $43,000. The district court acknowledged the awards were not equal, but explained the slight difference in favor of Linda Holden. The court stated the award was equitable because of $3,000 in legal fees incurred by Linda Holden in pursuing her discovery claims, $706 for property tax due on the property from the previous year, and the appraisal costs. The court also concluded the property division was equitable due to Dennis Holden's failure to cooperate in discovery and preparation for trial.

II

[¶ 6] On appeal, Dennis Holden raises numerous issues for our review. He argues the district court erred by not having adequate information to apply the Ruff-Fischer guidelines and the property award was erroneous because there were no certified appraisals done on the property. Specifically, Dennis Holden claims "the district court, because there were no certified appraisals, erred in not having adequate information to apply Ruff-Fischer guidelines, and by awarding the commercial property as well as the residence to Linda Holden, and thereby destroying two (2) businesses and causing the removal of corporate bankruptcy attorney. . . ." Dennis Holden claims:

(1) The court erred in awarding all real property, including home, land, and commercial business location, to Linda Holden.

(2) The court erred in awarding to Linda Holden the entire Holden to Nedloh, Ltd. loan . . . in the amount of $62,548.

(3) The court erred in awarding to Linda Holden one half of the funds on deposit with [the corporate bankruptcy attorney]. These are Corporate funds.

(4) The court erred in subtracting $1500 from Dennis Holden's column.

(5) The court erred in accepting a non-certified appraiser's input for real property values.

(6) The court erred in awarding "Cowboy Action Adventures" to Dennis Holden. The proper business names are Nedloh, Ltd., Brass Plus and Quickstar. The court awarded Dennis Holden a business that he never owned.

(7) The court erred in ordering corporate funds to be awarded to Linda Holden, which will incur tax liabilities for the businesses of Nedloh, Ltd. and Brass Plus.

(8) The court erred in causing all corporate taxes and debts to remain the liability of Nedloh, Ltd. and Brass Plus, i.e. Dennis Holden.

(9) The court erred in causing Dennis Holden's personal tax documents to become inaccessible.

(10) The court erred in causing Dennis Holden's personal liabilities to become unidentified.

(11) The court erred in causing Dennis Holden's personal assets to be undeclared.

(12) The court erred in causing personal and corporate identity issues to remain unresolved.

Linda Holden argues the court's judgment was proper, and the court properly relied on admissible evidence concerning the valuation of the real and personal property.

[¶ 7] Many of Dennis Holden's arguments are frivolous, mistaken, duplicitous, or indecipherable. Dennis Holden does not support his issues with an adequate legal argument. He also failed to raise many of his issues to the district court. We have repeatedly stated we are not ferrets and we "will not consider an argument that is not adequately articulated, supported, and briefed." See, e.g., State v. Haibeck, 2006 ND 100, ¶ 9, 714 N.W.2d 52; see also Riemers v. City of Grand Forks, 2006 ND 224, ¶ 9, 723 N.W.2d 518 (declining to consider an issue raised for the first time on appeal); Riemers v. Grand Forks Herald, 2004 ND 192, ¶ 11, 688 N.W.2d 167 ("`[A] party waives an issue by not providing supporting argument and, without supportive reasoning or citations to relevant authorities, an argument is without merit.'") (quoting Riemers v. O'Halloran, 2004 ND 79, ¶ 6, 678 N.W.2d 547). "`When the record does not allow for intelligent and meaningful review of an alleged error, the appellant has not carried the burden of demonstrating reversible error.'" Linrud v. Linrud, 552 N.W.2d 342, 345 (N.D.1996) (quoting Olson v. Griggs County, 491 N.W.2d 725, 732 (N.D.1992)). Therefore, we limit our review to the issues Dennis Holden properly advanced for our review: whether the district court erred in equitably dividing the marital property, and whether the district court was required to liquidate the marital estate to establish the value of the property.

III

[¶ 8] Dennis Holden claims the district court erred by not equitably distributing the marital property. We conclude the distribution fashioned by the district court was not clearly erroneous and as such, his claim fails.

[¶ 9] A district court's property valuation is a finding of fact, subject to the clearly erroneous standard of review. Kostelecky v. Kostelecky, 2006 ND 120, ¶ 8, 714 N.W.2d 845; Amsbaugh v. Amsbaugh, 2004 ND 11, ¶ 12, 673 N.W.2d 601. "`A finding of fact is clearly erroneous if it is induced by an erroneous view of the law, there is no evidence to support it, or if, although there is some evidence to support it, on the entire evidence the reviewing court is left with a definite and firm conviction a mistake has been made.'" Donlin v. Donlin, 2007 ND 5, ¶ 10, 725 N.W.2d 905 (quoting Kautzman v. Kautzman, 1998 ND 192, ¶ 8, 585 N.W.2d 561). "The value a trial court places on marital property depends on the evidence presented by the parties." Kostelecky, at ¶ 8; see also Fox v. Fox, 2001 ND 88, ¶ 22, 626 N.W.2d 660. A district court is in a far better position than an appellate court "to observe demeanor and credibility of witnesses. . . ." Kostelecky, at ¶ 8. "`A choice between two permissible views of the evidence is not clearly erroneous if the trial court's findings are based either on physical or documentary evidence, or inferences from other facts, or on credibility determinations.'" Id. (quoting Hoverson v. Hoverson, 2001 ND 124, ¶ 13, 629 N.W.2d 573). A court's valuation is not clearly erroneous if it is within the range of the evidence presented. Id. at ¶ 9; see also Amsbaugh, at ¶ 12. Therefore, we "presume a trial court's property valuations are correct" and we will not reverse the court's valuations and division of marital property unless they are clearly erroneous. Kostelecky, at ¶ 8.

[¶ 10] "Under N.D.C.C. § 14-05-24(1), the district court must make an equitable distribution of the property of the divorcing parties." Ulsaker v. White, 2006 ND 133, ¶ 10, 717 N.W.2d 567. All of the parties' assets must be considered by the district court to insure the property division is equitable. Donlin, 2007 ND 5, ¶ 11, 725 N.W.2d 905. We have said:

Under the Ruff-Fischer guidelines, the court must consider:

the respective ages of the parties, their earning ability, the duration of the...