A dispute over a divorce decree that reached Wyoming’s Supreme Court has been settled in the husband’s favor.
Justices rejected the appeal of Erin Innes over a lower court’s decision on how the property she held with her ex-husband should be divided.
“The district court awarded property in a division it considered fair and equitable after applying the factors set forth in (state law),” said the opinion, written by Justice Lynne Boomgaarden. “It did not abuse its discretion.”
According to the ruling, Erin Innes and Kyle Innes, both veterinarians in Gillette, were married in January 2011 and Kyle Innes filed for divorce in July 2018.
In a divorce decree issued by a district court in 2020, the court divided property jointly held by the two, including pickup trucks, horses, a home and various other assets. Erin Innes was also awarded $200,000 to ensure “a just and equitable division of the marital assets.”
However, Erin Innes argued she was entitled to $334,789 as her half of the equity in property the couple owned together.
The lower court properly took into consideration the fact that when the couple bought property, Kyle Innes provided the down payment from money he had before the marriage or money he had inherited, justices ruled.
The Supreme Court also held that the district court properly followed state law in determining how to divide the property.
“While the court did not consider the retirement accounts or credit card debt in its equitable division, it did consider that wife’s student loans were paid during the marriage; the endurance horses; the personal bank accounts; the vehicles and horse trailers; and the expense husband paid for marriage counseling,” the ruling said. “Wife’s argument does not account for those.”
