Hurley v. Hurley

WIEAND, Judge:

The issue in this appeal is whether a verdict for personal injuries sustained by a spouse prior to separation, where the verdict is recovered and satisfied by payment after separation, is marital property for purposes of effecting equitable distribution between the spouses. The trial court held the verdict to be marital property and included the proceeds in its decree of distribution. We reverse.

John Hurley (appellee) and Thelma Hurley (appellant) were married in 1955, separated in January, 1981, and divorced in 1983. At the time of hearings in the divorce action, the husband…