Buehler v. Buehler, 166 P.2d 608 (Cal. Ct. App. 1946). · Go Syfert
Buehler v. Buehler, 166 P.2d 608 (Cal. Ct. App. 1946). Cases Citing This Book View Copy Cite
32 citation events (1 in the last 25 years) across 5 distinct courts.
Strongest positive: Terry v. Terry (calctapp, 2000-04-18)
Treatment trajectory · 1946 → 2026 · click a year to view as-of
1946 1986 2026
Top citers, strongest first. 7 distinct citers. How cited ↗
discussed Cited as authority (rule) Terry v. Terry
Cal. Ct. App. · 2000 · confidence medium
(In re Marriage of Martin (1991) 229 Cal.App.3d 1196, 1199, 1201 [ 280 Cal.Rptr. 565 ]; In re Marriage of Kennedy (1987) 193 Cal.App.3d 1633, 1640 [ 239 Cal.Rptr. 151 ]; In re Marriage of Norvall (1987) 192 Cal.App.3d 1047, 1061 [ 237 Cal.Rptr. 770 ]; In re Marriage of Rabkin (1986) 179 Cal.App.3d 1071, 1081 [ 225 Cal.Rptr. 219 ]; Sammut v. Sammut (1980) 103 Cal.App.3d 557, 563-564 [ 163 Cal.Rptr. 193 ]; In re Marriage of Kuppinger (1975) 48 Cal.App.3d 628, 635 [ 120 Cal.Rptr. 654 ]; Buehler v. Buehler (1946) 73 Cal.App.2d 472, 475-476 [ 166 P.2d 608 ]; Farrar v. Farrar (1920) 45 Cal.App. 584,…
discussed Cited as authority (rule) Wright v. Wright
Cal. Ct. App. · 1957 · confidence medium
“The law is settled in California that when the wife is the owner of a nonincome producing property she is not required to have recourse to such property for her support before seeking support from her husband.” (Buehler v. Buehler, 73 Cal.App.2d 472, 475 [ 166 P.2d 608 ], See also Farrar v. Farrar, 45 Cal.App. 584, 586 [ 188 P. 289 ].) Substantially the same thing may be said about the allowance of attorney’s fees, as has been said about the support for the wife.
discussed Cited as authority (rule) Nelson v. Nelson
Cal. Ct. App. · 1950 · confidence medium
(Tomaier v. Tomaier, 23 Cal.2d 754, 757 [ 146 P.2d 905 ]; Hulse v. Lawson, 212 Cal. 614, 620 [ 299 P. 525 ]; Jansen v. Jansen, 127 Cal.App. 294, 297 [ 15 P.2d 777 ]; Buehler v. Buehler, 73 Cal.App.2d 472, 475 [ 166 P.2d 608 ] ; Luminoso v. Luminoso, 75 Cal.App.2d 472, 474 [ 171 P.2d 516 ]; Perdicalis v. Perdicalis, 92 Cal.App.2d 274, 276 [206 P.2d650].) In the instant case the evidence disclosed that the appellant handled all of the details of the purchase, stated to respondent that the house and lot should be community property, and the entire purchase price was paid by community funds (which…
discussed Cited as authority (rule) Barham v. Barham (2×)
Cal. · 1949 · confidence medium
Code, 146, subd. 1; Marshall v. Marshall, 196 Cal. 761, 765 [ 239 P. 36 ]; Crouch v. Crouch, 63 Cal.App.2d 747, 756 [ 147 P.2d 678 ]; Buehler v. Buehler, 73 Cal.App.2d 472, 476 [ 166 P.2d 608 ]; Arnold v. Arnold, 76 Cal.App.2d 877, 883-884 [ 174 P.2d 674 ].) [13] Likewise without merit is defendant's claim that the trial court's award of the homestead to plaintiff was improper because it was taken from his separate property, concededly was "worth fifty thousand dollars" and was given to her "for the remainder of her natural life," without regard for the event of her remarriage as a limitation …
discussed Cited as authority (rule) Nichols v. Mitchell
Cal. · 1948 · confidence medium
(Falk v. Falk, 48 Cal.App.2d 762, 767 [ 120 P.2d 714 ]; Buehler v. Buehler, 73 Cal.App.2d 472, 474 [ 166 P.2d 608 ].) And the fact that Mr. Mitchell admittedly used community funds in making subsequent payments on the property here in question was another circumstance which the trial court might have viewed as indicating that though legal title was in the name of Mrs. Mitchell, the property actually represented a community asset rather than her separate estate.
discussed Cited as authority (rule) Cameron v. Cameron
Cal. Ct. App. · 1948 · confidence medium
(Farrar v. Farrar, 45 Cal.App. 584, 586 [188 P. 289]; Busch v. Busch, 99 Cal.App. 198, 200 [ 278 P. 456 ].)” (Buehler v. Buehler, 73 Cal.App.2d 472, 475 [ 166 P.2d 608 ].) Nor can we say that the court was in error in finding that appellant has the ability to pay $125 per month.
discussed Cited "see, e.g." Sandrini v. Ambrosetti (2×)
Cal. Ct. App. · 1952 · signal: see also · confidence low
See, also, Buehler v. Buehler, 73 Cal. App.2d 472 [ 166 P.2d 608 ]; and Perdicalis v. Perdicalis, 92 Cal.App.2d 274 [ 206 P.2d 650 ]. *450 Defendants argue that the rule only applies in divorce actions, where the parties are living and testify to a previous agreement between them, and cannot be applied to actions such as this where a devisee is testing the rights of a surviving joint tenant’s claim to the property.
Retrieving the full opinion text from the archive…
E. REBECCA WAGNER BUEHLER, Respondent,
v.
HAROLD M. BUEHLER, Appellant
Civ. 15027.
California Court of Appeal.
Mar 8, 1946.
166 P.2d 608
1946 Cal. App. LEXIS 862
Frederick L. Botsford and Samuel M. Garroway for Appellant., Loucks, Phister, Baker & Stephenson for Respondent.
McComb.
Cited by 16 opinions  |  Published
McCOMB, J.

From an interlocutory judgment of divorce in favor of plaintiff granted on the grounds of extreme cruelty, defendant appeals.

It is conceded by defendant (appellant) that the evidence supporting the charges of cruelty was sufficient to warrant the granting of a divorce to plaintiff. Defendant urges however that there is no evidence to sustain the trial court’s findings:

[*474] 1 “That the property described in Paragraph TV of the First Amended Complaint is the community property of the parties hereto.”

The foregoing finding is supported in accordance with the following rules of law and the evidence hereinafter set forth.

(D Where separate property is intermixed and commingled with community property to such an extent that the separate property cannot be properly segregated from the community property,' the commingled property is regarded as community property. (Truelsen v. Nelson, 42 Cal. App.2d 750, 754 [109 P.2d 996] ; Estate of Woods, 23 Cal. App.2d 187, 191 [72 P.2d 258] ; Cline v. Cline, 4 Cal.App.2d 626, 629 [41 P.2d 588].)

(2) When separate and community property have been commingled the burden is on the party claiming part of the property as separate property to establish clearly its character as such. (Truelsen v. Nelson, supra, at p. 754 ; Dimmick v. Dimmick, 95 Cal. 323, 328 [30 P. 547] ; In re Freitas, 16 F.Supp. (So. Dist. Cal.), 557, 562.)

In the present case the testimony discloses that the property described in paragraph IV of the first amended complaint consisting of household furniture and furnishings and a house and lot located at 610 West 38th Street, San Pedro, California, had been purchased with funds which defendant had borrowed from the Presbyterian Ministers’ Fund on the credit of an insurance policy held by him with such fund and from general funds which he had earned subsequent to his marriage to plaintiff on January 31, 1925. The money which he had borrowed from the ministers’ fund had been repaid by defendant’s cashing in two paid up policies of life insurance which he held with the Northwestern Mutual Mortgage Company.

The record fails to disclose whether the insurance policies which defendant cashed in order to pay his loans from the ministers’ fund were life insurance policies held by him prior to his marriage or policies acquired subsequent to it. Under rules (1) and (2) supra, defendant has thus failed to sustain the burden of proving that the money which he borrowed and commingled with his general funds (which it is conceded were community property), was his separate property. Therefore under the rules stated the trial court was justified in drawing the inference that the property described in para[*475] graph. IY of the amended complaint was purchased with community funds and was therefore community property.

The fact that the title to the real property was taken in joint tenancy by plaintiff and defendant is not determinative of the question here presented in view of the fact that the rule that the use of community funds to purchase property and the taking of title thereto in the name of the spouses as joint tenants is tantamount to a binding agreement between them that the same shall not thereafter be held as community property (Siberell v. Siberell, 214 Cal. 767, 773 [7 P.2d 1003]), is subject to the qualification that if the evidence shows that the parties intended the property to be community property it will be treated as such in spite of the fact the title was taken as joint tenants. (Tomaier v. Tomaier, 23 Cal.2d 754, 755 et seq. [146 P.2d 905].)

In the present case plaintiff testified that defendant had referred to the property in question as “community property” or “our property” and that on one occasion defendant had asked plaintiff to sign a deed changing the property from a community interest between them to an interest whereby plaintiff, defendant and their son would each have a one-third interest in the property. From this evidence the trial court was justified in inferring that the property was community property even though they had taken the title in joint tenancy.

2 “Thai plaintiff is without funds or property to maintain or support herself and said minor child either permanently or during the pendency of this action

The foregoing finding is supported by the uncontradicted evidence. The testimony discloses that defendant and plaintiff had two minor children, the younger one being entirely unable to support herself; that plaintiff was a registered nurse and physically able to work; that she owned 107 shares of Crown Knitting Mills stock from which she had not received any dividends in the past five or six years; that she also owned Standard Oil Company stock of the value of $800, bank stock of the value of $400, and had an interest in her father’s estate valued at $7,000; further that she had received $1,543 from insurance upon the life of her father and $300 because of her father’s death. Fifteen hundred dollars of the insurance on her father’s life she loaned to defendant.

The law is settled in California that when a wife is the owner of nonincome producing property she is not re[*476] quired to have recourse to such property for her support before seeking support from her husband. (Farrar v. Farrar, 45 Cal.App. 584, 586 [188 P. 289] ; Busch v. Busch, 99 Cal. App. 198, 200 [278 P. 456].)

It is likewise established that where, as in the instant case, a divorce decree is granted on the ground of extreme cruelty the trial court may award any or all of the community property to the innocent party. (Civ. Code, § 146, subd. 1.)

In view of the fact that the trial court found, supported by substantial evidence, that plaintiff was entitled to a divorce from defendant on the grounds of cruelty, that the property of the parties was community property and that plaintiff and her minor child were without means of support, the award of the community property to plaintiff was proper.

For the foregoing reasons the judgment is affirmed.

Moore, P. J., and Wilson, J., concurred.

Appellant’s petition for a hearing by the Supreme Court was denied May 6, 1946.