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Badillo v. Badillo
Citations: 123 Cal. App. 3d 1009; 177 Cal. Rptr. 56; 1981 Cal. App. LEXIS 2184Docket: Civ. 24362
Court: California Court of Appeal; September 29, 1981; California; State Appellate Court
Alejandro M. Badillo appeals a judgment denying his action to quiet title to a residence and ordering partition of the property. Alejandro and Alicia Badillo, married in 1948, purchased the residence as joint tenants. In 1970, Alicia filed for divorce, listing the residence among the assets for court disposition. After Alejandro was served, Alicia obtained a default judgment, which classified the residence as community property and awarded exclusive use to Alicia, with Alejandro to receive his equity interest upon sale. Following Alicia's intestate death in 1979, Alejandro Jr. was appointed administrator of her estate, which included the residence. Alejandro, claiming survivorship rights, sued to quiet title, while the defendants sought partition. The trial court denied Alejandro's claim and granted partition. Alejandro argues the court improperly used the default divorce judgment to estop his quiet title action, asserting it was void because it exceeded Alicia's petition, which sought equitable division of community property. He contends the judgment was inequitable since he did not receive an immediate benefit from the residence's equity. Despite acknowledging the validity of his arguments, the court concluded that since the residence was included in Alicia's petition, Alejandro was aware of the court's jurisdiction over the property, thus upholding the judgment. Civil Code section 4800, subdivision (b)(1) allows the court to award assets to one party to achieve a substantially equal division of property, particularly concerning the family residence, which may involve offsetting compensation to the other party (as established in In re Marriage of Tammen). Alejandro does not contest the court's jurisdiction over property distribution but disputes the valuation of his offset, which is deferred until the residence is sold. He claims the court's undervaluation provided Alicia with more relief than her complaint warranted, referencing Code of Civil Procedure section 580, which pertains to the extent of relief granted. However, the relief awarded aligns with the request for property disposition "according to law," despite the offset not complying with Civil Code section 4800. Any error is subject to appeal but is not void or open to collateral attack. Alejandro's appeal is ten years late, rendering the divorce judgment final and valid. He may be collaterally estopped from asserting property rights in the residence beyond the $2,327.50 equity interest awarded in the divorce. Alejandro's claim regarding the trial court's failure to comply with California Rules of Court rule 232 is unclear and unsupported. The judgment is affirmed, with concurrence from Judges Cologne and Staniforth.