WAYMOND M. BROWN, Judge.
This appeal involves the division of marital property following the parties' 2014 divorce. Sandra Jean (Flowers) Fry brings this appeal from the Hempstead County Circuit Court's decree ending her marriage to Jimmy Wayne Fry. For reversal, Sandra Fry argues that the circuit court erred by (1) disregarding the parties' prenuptial agreement when it considered her pre-marital inheritance in diminishing her marital property rights; (2) making an unequal division of property on the basis of inheritance property; and (3) misapplying the relevant factors for division of marital property pursuant to Arkansas Code Annotated § 9-12-315(a)(1)(A)(i)-(ix). Because we find no error in the circuit court's decision, we affirm.
The parties separated in August 2013 after twenty-two years of marriage, and Sandra Fry filed her petition for divorce on September 11, 2013. Previously the parties had married in 1981 and divorced in 1983. Prior to their second marriage, the parties executed a "Mutual Disclaimer of Interest," agreeing that any inheritance received from the parties' parents would remain separate property. Below is the portion of the agreement at issue in this appeal.
In 2012, W.D. Flowers died leaving his daughter, Sandra Fry, as the sole beneficiary of his approximately $600,000 estate. At a bench trial on May 12, 2014, she testified that she was seeking an equal division of marital property and introduced the premarital contract without objection. Conversely, appellee introduced evidence of account values and certain appraised portions of real estate owned by appellant, over her objection, as well as her inheritance from her father, requesting the circuit court make an unequal property division. The court granted appellant's petition for divorce on the basis of general indignities, and in an order dated May 15, 2014, divided the property as follows:
Sandra Fry appealed.
We review cases dividing marital property de novo.
Appellant's first argument is somewhat perplexing. At points throughout her brief she argues that the circuit court disregarded the premarital contract, directly violated the terms of the contract, or maybe infringed on the intent of the contract. Perhaps the easiest argument to discern is shown when she states that the "heart of this appeal is that the trial court erred in disregarding that agreement, by only acknowledging its existence yet deviating from its core." We find no error.
The main problem with appellant's argument is that it rests on the assumption that the circuit court unequally divided the property, which is an inaccurate statement that we will address below. While we agree that the circuit court did little beyond acknowledging the existence of the contract, we cannot say that it deviated from the core of that contract for the simple reasons that the court did specifically note the existence of the contract in its order and, more importantly, it did not divide any of Sandra Fry's inheritance. In the instant case, appellee waived his right to receive any inheritance from his former wife's father. "Waiver" is the voluntary abandonment or surrender by a capable person of a right known by him to exist, with the intent that he shall forever be deprived of its benefits, and it may occur when one, with full knowledge of the material facts, does something that is inconsistent with the right or his intention to rely upon it.
The plain language of the parties' "Mutual Disclaimer of Interests" states that appellee waives all interest in any property that appellant would have received from her father. Therefore, he voluntarily abandoned any claim he would otherwise have had to W.D. Flowers's $600,000 estate. At the point that the circuit court awarded zero dollars from that inheritance to appellee, it not only acknowledged the existence of the contract, but actually enforced its validity. There is no error.
Further weakening the "heart" of Sandra Fry's appeal, and in contravention of her second argument, is the fact that the circuit court made an equitable division of property. First, the language of the circuit court order demonstrates that the judge was intending to make an equal distribution when he stated "it is equitable further that Sandra Fry pay to Jimmy Fry the amount of $21,500." A circuit court has broad powers to distribute property in order to achieve an equitable distribution.
Roth IRA $ 7,412.39 IRA 9,729.03 Ark. Diamond 30,000.00 Ameriprise 5,534.84 APERS Account 403,663.00
Thus, the total amount of assets distributed to Sandra Fry was $456,339.26. Appellee received the following:
Allstate 40,770.05 Allstate (2) 58,079.84 Lincoln 60,513.46 Prudential 225,449.46 Marital Home 160,000.00
Although appellee's total assets amount to $545,812.73, our analysis is not finished. As part of the distribution, appellee has also been left the responsibility of paying for the couple's first mortgage, totaling $131,000, thus reducing his share of assets to $414,812.73. The circuit court then adjusted certain aspects of the division to effectively equalize the amount distributed to both parties.
Finally, even if our court were to find that there was an unequal distribution, we would still affirm. A court's unequal division of marital property will not be reversed unless found to be clearly erroneous.
The circuit court discussed several of these factors in its order.
Hence, in reaching its decision, it is clear that the circuit court at least considered the relevant statutory factors for distribution of marital property, specifically discussing factors such as the length of the marriage, sources of income, contribution to the marriage, etc. Again, we cannot say that the circuit judge clearly erred.
In summation, appellant Sandra Fry would like for us to believe that it is error for the circuit court to note her inheritance in its order dividing property because of the existence of the premarital contract. She is incorrect. The premarital contract required that Jimmy Fry would not receive any of his wife's inheritance from her father. He did not. Thus, the contract was upheld, and the circuit court made an equal division of marital property.
Affirmed.
Abramson and Glover, JJ., agree.