Zachman v. Zachman

• Decision Date: 02 February 1960
• Citation: 101 N.W.2d 55,9 Wis.2d 335
• Parties: Harriet ZACHMAN, Respondent, v. Warren ZACHMAN, Appellant.
• Court: Wisconsin Supreme Court

Page 55

101 N.W.2d 55

9 Wis.2d 335

Harriet ZACHMAN, Respondent, v. Warren ZACHMAN, Appellant.

Supreme Court of Wisconsin.

Feb. 2, 1960.

Kaftan, Kaftan & Kaftan, Green Bay, for respondent.

BROADFOOT, Justice.

The parties were married at Owatonna, Minnesota, on January 11, 1944. At the time of the marriage the defendant was twenty-seven years of age and the plaintiff was twenty-three years of age. The defendant was then in the United States army. The issue of said marriage was four boys, ranging in age from seven to fourteen years. The defendant was discharged from the army in 1945 and went to work as a salesman for the plaintiff's father who operated a business known as the Gallaher Company. Shortly thereafter he was transferred to Wisconsin with exclusive sales territory in the eastern part of the state. They resided in Oshkosh until 1956, when they moved to Green Bay.

During the first three years of his employment the defendant earned from $6,000 to $10,000 a year and supported his family. He did not like sales work and wished to find employment in an office. He attended Oshkosh business college for two years, receiving the sum of $120 per month from the government under the G. I. Bill of Rights. Thereafter he worked for several different concerns doing office work, his longest period of employment being with the Wisconsin Axle Company for a period of two to two and one-half years. During all of this period he retained his connection with the Gallaher Company and made a few sales on Saturdays and at such other times as he could get away. His salary for office work was much less than his commissions on sales when he devoted his time thereto. In July, 1958, he severed his connection with the Gallaher Company and worked for a concern in Green Bay with a view to purchasing an interest in a business. He was employed there for three months at a salary of $100 per week. At the end of that period he and his employer could not agree upon terms and he was released. He was then unemployed for approximately three months. In 1957 his earnings had dwindled to $1,900.

In 1948 the plaintiff's father died and she inherited a one-third interest in the Gallaher Company. The business was continued under a manager until 1957 when it was sold. Plaintiff's interest in the business yielded her from $5,000 to $7,000 per year during that period. Plaintiff's mother died in 1950 and plaintiff inherited $4,700 from her mother's estate. Plaintiff sold her share in the Gallaher Company for the sum of $37,500, a portion of which was to be paid in annual payments. Plaintiff testified that she spent her inheritance from her mother for family necessities and nearly all of her income from the business from 1948 until 1957 for the same purpose.

Defendant demonstrated his ability to work and earn a substantial living for himself and his family by his efforts prior to the time the plaintiff inherited money. The plaintiff testified as to his ability, intelligence and working habits. The record establishes that the defendant is in good health and that he has ability to work and earn a substantial salary. He is temperate in his habits and did contribute such money as he earned in lessening amounts as time went by to the support of the family.

The obligation of a husband to support a wife arises from duties imposed by law and is grounded upon principles of public policy. Buss v. Buss, 252 Wis. 500, 32 N.W.2d 253; Fricke v. Fricke, 257 Wis. 124, 42 N.W.2d 500. Divorces are purely statutory. Two elements need be proved under sec. 247.07(8), Stats.: First, the husband must be of sufficient ability, and second, he must...