Posted by Nydia Streets of Streets Law in Florida Divorce
If a spouse can prove that personal or marital expenses were paid from a business bank account, does this convert the business to a marital, jointly-owned property? This was an issue in the case Rose v. Rose, 2D2024-2406 (Fla. 2d DCA November 5, 2025).
In this divorce case, the trial court determined that marital expenses were paid using funds from a bank account owned by the former husband’s non-marital business. The court reasoned that because of this “a portion of the value of the business lost its separate and non-marital character", and the court ordered the former husband to pay the former wife half of the value of the business. Further the trial court found that $30,000 in cash that was in the marital home was dissipated by the former husband and placed the burden on him to prove otherwise. The former husband could not, so the trial court ruled he dissipated this marital asset. The former husband appealed.
Regarding the business, the appellate court reversed, holding “As this court has previously held, ‘Using some portion of non-marital funds to pay marital expenses does not convert the remaining non-marital funds into a marital asset.’ Grieco v. Grieco, 917 So. 2d 1052, 1054-55 (Fla. 2d DCA 2006).” As to the cash, the court held “Here, there was no evidence that the former husband's use of the funds constituted misconduct, and the trial court made no such finding.” The court concluded “The final judgment of dissolution is reversed insofar as the distribution of those two assets.”
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