Brenda Faye Alizzi v. Joseph Bradford Alizzi

350 So. 3d 758 (2022)

Purchase the Printed Copy at bsmsphd.com

Nature of the Case

To access this section all you need to do is click here and register.

Facts

W and Joseph (H) had a twenty-three-year marriage. The parties separated when they were in their late sixties. Before the parties' separation, they had owned a successful restaurant and had lived in an expensive home. Upon the parties' separation, W moved into the three-bedroom home of her daughter from a previous marriage. When the parties separated, W retained an attorney and a forensic accountant for the ensuing dissolution action. At that time, her liquid assets consisted of $82,000 in two checking accounts and $215,000 in her IRA. Sixteen months later, by the time of the temporary relief hearing, W had paid a total of $128,000 in attorney's fees and forensic accounting fees. W also had withdrawn $75,000 from her IRA to use towards her daughter's down payment on a larger four-bedroom house in which she, her daughter, and her daughter's two sons would live. Those and other expenses had reduced the wife's liquid assets to approximately $10,000 in her checking accounts and $72,000 in her IRA. W also incurred a $40,911 tax penalty for withdrawing funds from her IRA. W owed another $17,000 in attorney's fees and $6,300 in forensic accounting fees. W's health insurance also costs $781 per month, and she paid $1,800 in monthly rent and utilities to her daughter. W's only income was from Social Security and a pension which combined to provide $3,424 per month. W testified she required H's support to enable her to live in the manner that she had enjoyed before the separation. W's forensic accountant testified W's net worth was approximately $36,000. The accountant further determined W's financial needs, after offsetting income, was $10,174 per month, including $7,000 for monthly rent for her own furnished apartment. The accountant conceded those amounts were not W's actual expenses, but were anticipated expenses based on her historical lifestyle and expenses before the parties' separation. H's forensic accountant testified that W's actual expenses totaled $6,858 per month. Hs accountant agreed with W's income calculation. The court ruled that the temporary alimony request in this case is not accompanied by any evidence concerning W's actual need for this award of temporary support. The court found that W's actual needs were $1,494.00 per month for purposes of temporary alimony. The circuit court added the following 'The Wife's three (3) financial affidavits all indicate her net worth to be in excess of $3.8 [million].' W appealed.