Marriage of Ward CA1/5

I. BACKGROUND

Wife filed a divorce petition in 2016 after 32 years of marriage. She continued living in the family home. On November 16, 2018, the parties, each represented by counsel, signed a Stipulation and Order for Division of Property (settlement agreement) resolving all issues except spousal support. Paragraph 1 of the settlement agreement provided, “The community residence [in Moraga] shall be assigned to [husband] as his sole and separate property subject to the following terms: [¶] a. Within 30 days of execution of this agreement, [husband] shall provide proof of his ability to prequalify to buy out [wife’s] interest in the residence [for] $464,000.00. [¶] . . . [¶] (d) Upon completion of the terms outlined herein and upon receipt of the agreed upon equalization payment by [wife], [wife] shall vacate the residence within 30 days of receipt, or by January 2, 2019, whichever happens second.” Paragraph 8 provided, “The parties agree to mutually waive credits owed to each other pursuant to Marriage of Epstein and Marriage of Watts.” (See In re Marriage of Epstein (1979) 24 Cal.3d 76, 84–85 (Epstein), superseded on other grounds as stated in In re Marriage of Walrath (1998)…