Bruce L. Salituri v. Susan A. Salituri
184 So. 3d 1250
| Fla. Dist. Ct. App. | 2016Background
- Parties: Bruce L. Salituri (husband/appellant) and Susan A. Salituri (wife/appellee) in a marital dissolution with minor child; appeal from Broward County circuit court final judgment.
- Trial court awarded the wife sole decision-making over the child’s extracurricular activities, health care, and education, although her pleadings and trial evidence only sought extracurricular decision-making.
- Trial judge directed the wife’s attorney to draft factual findings regarding recurring family contributions/income and the amount, effectively delegating factfinding to counsel.
- The court adopted a $30,480 annual figure for gifts from the husband’s 94+-year-old father without sufficient factfinding about the father’s finances or gifting intent.
- Multiple equitable-distribution errors: failure to value all assets/debts; mischaracterization of husband’s corporation; refusal to consider an acknowledged $15,000 lien on a Corvette; order to sell a Delray Beach rental unit despite third-party (husband’s father) ownership interest; and an unpled order for partition of the marital home tied to a foreclosure appeal.
- Fourth District reversed the final judgment in large part and remanded for a new judge to rehear credibility-dependent issues and correct legal/valuation errors, leaving only jurisdiction and irretrievable breakdown findings intact.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument (wife) | Defendant's Argument (husband) | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Award of sole decision-making (activities, health, education) | Wife sought sole control over child’s extracurricular activities to promote teamwork/socialization | Husband opposed broader sole decision-making and argued relief sought was limited | Reversed: trial court exceeded pleadings and evidence; decision-making award beyond requested scope was improper |
| Trial judge delegating factual findings (income/family contributions) | Wife relied on testimony to show recurring parental gifts to husband | Husband argued judge improperly shifted factfinding to wife’s counsel | Reversed: judge improperly asked wife’s attorney to draft findings and quantify recurring gifts, creating unacceptable delegation/appearance problems |
| Inclusion of $30,480/year from father as income | Wife treated father’s gifts as recurring income supporting support/award | Husband disputed sufficiency of evidence that gifts would continue, given father’s age/finances | Reversed/Remanded: court must evaluate father’s age, finances, history, and intent rather than infer amount from husband’s affidavit |
| Valuation and disposition of marital assets/debts (corporation, Corvette lien, Delray unit, partition order) | Wife argued various assets/debts were marital and sought distribution/sale/partition | Husband argued court failed to value assets/debts, mischaracterized corporate interest, ignored Corvette lien, lacked jurisdiction to order sale of unit partly owned by his father, and had no pleading for partition | Reversed: court failed to value assets per statute; corporation may be marital asset despite sole incorporator; abused discretion by refusing lien evidence; lacked jurisdiction over nonparty co-owner; partition/sale orders improper without pleading/consent |
Key Cases Cited
- McDonald v. McDonald, 732 So. 2d 505 (Fla. 4th DCA 1999) (trial court cannot grant relief beyond pleadings/evidence)
- Krift v. Obenour, 152 So. 3d 645 (Fla. 4th DCA 2014) (limits on rulings outside scope of pleadings/evidence)
- Kasdorf v. Kasdorf, 931 So. 2d 257 (Fla. 4th DCA 2006) (court may assign ultimate decision-making for medical/dental where record supports)
- Perlow v. Berg-Perlow, 875 So. 2d 383 (Fla. 2004) (trial judge must independently make factual findings and conclusions; must not delegate to counsel)
- Oluwek v. Oluwek, 2 So. 3d 1038 (Fla. 2d DCA 2009) (recurring gifts require fact-specific inquiry into donor’s intent and ability)
- Vorcheimer v. Vorcheimer, 780 So. 2d 1018 (Fla. 4th DCA 2001) (treatment of irregular family contributions in income determinations)
- Capote v. Capote, 117 So. 3d 1153 (Fla. 2d DCA 2013) (a corporation can be marital even if one spouse is sole incorporator)
- Levy v. Levy, 862 So. 2d 48 (Fla. 3d DCA 2003) (corporate interests may constitute marital assets)
- Grider-Garcia v. State Farm Mut. Auto., 73 So. 3d 847 (Fla. 5th DCA 2011) (abuse of discretion in excluding undisputed documentary evidence)
- Amador v. Amador, 796 So. 2d 1212 (Fla. 3d DCA 2001) (courts should permit reopening to admit undisputed evidence on material matters)
- Matajek v. Skowronska, 927 So. 2d 981 (Fla. 5th DCA 2006) (court lacks jurisdiction to adjudicate property rights of nonparty co-owner)
- Reyes v. Reyes, 714 So. 2d 646 (Fla. 4th DCA 1998) (partition cannot be ordered absent pleading or party consent)