Marr. of Georgiou and Leslie

More than three years after entry of judgment, Maria Leslie filed an action under Family Code section 1101, alleging her former husband, Byron Georgiou, breached his fiduciary duty to her during the dissolution proceedings by not disclosing the true value of a community asset divided in the marital settlement agreement (MSA), his prospective referral fee in federal class action securities litigation against Enron Corporation (Enron). The family court granted Georgiou’s motion for summary adjudication, determining section 1101 does not authorize a postjudgment action, and alternatively, the action was untimely under the statute’s three-year statute of limitations (§ 1101, subd. (d)(1)). Leslie challenges the order, contending both rulings are incorrect.

We conclude section 1101 does not authorize Leslie’s action, and thus we are not required to address the alternative ruling. Because the prospective referral fee was not concealed, but rather the parties litigated the issue and the judgment fully adjudicated the asset, Leslie’s recourse was an action to set aside the judgment, or a portion thereof, within the one-year limitations period specified in the relevant portion of…