134 A.D.2d 337 | N.Y. App. Div. | 1987
In an action for a divorce and ancillary relief, the defendant wife appeals and the plaintiff husband cross-appeals from stated portions of a judgment of the Supreme Court, Nassau County (Balletta, J.), entered November 12, 1986, which, inter alia, (1) awarded the defendant wife $191,980.66 as distributive award, (2) awarded the wife $8,500 in counsel fees, and $2,000 in expert fees, and (3) denied the wife’s claim for necessaries.
Ordered that the judgment is modified, on the law and the facts, by deleting from the eighth decretal paragraph thereof the following phrases (1) "the sum of $191,980.66”, (2) "Defendant’s share of plaintiff’s interest in Scales Air Compressor Corp. $193,530.66”, and (3) "Adjusted balance due to defendant $191,980.66”, and substituting therefor, respectively, the phrases (1) "the sum of $111,798.20”, (2) "Defendant’s share of plaintiff’s interest in Scales Air Compressor Corp. $113,348.20”, and (3) "Adjusted balance due to defendant $111,798.20”; as so modified, the judgment is affirmed insofar as appealed from, without costs or disbursements.
In this divorce action, the parties stipulated to an equal distribution of all marital assets, except with respect to the husband’s stock interest in his closely held corporation, the determination of which was left to the trial court. Upon a review of the record, we find that the trial court was correct in granting the wife an award of 35% of the husband’s stock interest in the Scales Air Compressor Corporation, since it was primarily his personal contributions that gave rise to and nurtured the continuous development of that interest, and the wife had no participation in the business (see, Rosenberg v Rosenberg, 126 AD2d 537, lv denied 70 NY2d 601).
We also reject the wife’s claim for so-called "necessaries” insofar as she seeks reimbursement for expenses which were incurred after the commencement of this action. The maintenance award established by the trial court was made retroactive to the date of the service of the summons, and that award established the standard of support for that period of time.
Lastly, we find that the trial court acted properly in awarding counsel fees and expert fees to the wife. Weinstein, J. P., Rubin, Kooper and Sullivan, JJ., concur.