Marriage of Rossi
Court of Appeals of California
108 Cal. Rptr. 2d 270 (2001)
Denise Rossi (plaintiff) won a share of a lottery pool while married to Thomas Rossi (defendant), and filed for divorce before cashing her first winnings check. She had the money sent to her mother's address and never told Thomas about it. Thomas discovered the winnings only after receiving a buyout offer addressed to Denise, then moved to set aside the divorce decree and sought 100 percent of the winnings as a fraudulently concealed community asset. Denise argued Thomas should be denied that remedy because he had unclean hands as an abusive spouse. The trial court awarded Thomas the full amount, and Denise appealed.
Whether a trial court has discretion to award less than the full value of a community-property asset that a spouse fraudulently concealed.