Shaluly v. Shaluly, 22208

• Citation: 284 S.C. 71,325 S.E.2d 66
• Decision Date: 12 December 1984
• Docket Number: No. 22208,22208
• Court: United States State Supreme Court of South Carolina
• Parties: Martha A. SHALULY, Appellant, v. Joseph Richard SHALULY, Respondent. . Heard

Page 66

325 S.E.2d 66

284 S.C. 71

Martha A. SHALULY, Appellant, v. Joseph Richard SHALULY, Respondent.

No. 22208.

Supreme Court of South Carolina.

Heard Dec. 12, 1984.

Decided Jan. 8, 1985.

Julius B. Aiken and William J. Barnes, Greenville, for appellant.

Herman E. Cox, Greenville, for respondent.

LITTLEJOHN, Chief Justice.

By the appeal in this divorce action, the appellant-wife, Martha A. Shaluly, contests only the equitable distribution of property ordered by the trial court. She submits that the trial judge awarded a disproportionately large share of the marital property to the respondent-husband, Joseph Richard Shaluly. We agree.

The parties were married for twenty-seven years, and gave birth to five children, two of whom are unemancipated and are in the custody of the wife. The couple began their marriage with virtually no assets but were able to accumulate rather substantial properties during the twenty-seven year period. They operated a small but lucrative grocery business and purchased several parcels of real estate, bonds and made other property investments. For many years while performing the chores of a housewife and rearing children, the wife worked regularly in the store, and it is beyond question that her contribution to the accumulation of properties was substantial.

She was granted a divorce in February 1982 on the ground of adultery. Other issues, including equitable distribution, alimony, child support and attorney's fees, were reserved for a later hearing. The judge awarded $1,600 per month alimony plus $400 per month child support for each child during minority and additionally awarded attorney's fees.

As relates to equitable distribution, which is the only matter on appeal, the judge awarded the wife the marital home (valued between $100,000 and $225,000) and the furniture therein (valued between $5,000 and $85,000) plus $40,000 in bonds. In addition, she was allowed $20,000 taken from a savings account but it is inferable that such was used for support during an eleven-month period already ended.

On the other hand, the judge allotted to the husband the grocery store business (valued between $50,000 and $500,000), Airport Road property (valued at $40,000), rental property (valued between $125,000 and $150,000), $200,000 in tax-free bonds, a $47,000 Certificate of Deposit, a Paine Webber account ($25,000), business checking account ($5,000), Keogh Plan ($8,000) and a lake lot (valued at $30,000).

The authority to distribute equitably the accumulation of a couple during a marriage imposes upon a Family Court Judge an awesome responsibility. In most civil litigation, one may not be divested of property unless twelve jurors unanimously agree. At the same time, one Family Court Judge who sits as both judge and jury may take property from a husband or wife and allocate it to the other. This makes compliance with Rule 27 of the Family Court extremely important in order that there may be a meaningful review when one of the parties feels aggrieved by the distribution decree of the trial judge. This rule requires the judge to make salient findings of fact. A remand of this case might be justified because of the failure of the judge to find values of the many properties involved, but in lieu of remand, this Court will undertake to settle the dispute.

From the values recited hereinabove and the uncertain approximations, it is difficult to determine with exactness the value of the property each of the parties received. For example, the order recites that the value of the marital residence "... has been established to be between $100,000...