Rossi

Denise Rossi appeals from a postjudgment order in this dissolution case, awarding all the lottery winnings concealed by Denise *36 during the dissolution proceedings to her ex-husband, Thomas Rossi. 1 Her argument is twofold: that Thomas had unclean hands and therefore was not entitled to a share of the lottery prize, and that her conduct did not meet the statutory definition for the penalty because she believed the prize to be her separate property.

We conclude that the family court’s findings that Denise intentionally concealed the lottery winnings from Thomas and that her conduct constituted fraud within the meaning of Civil Code section 3294 are supported by substantial evidence and that there was no abuse of the court’s discretion.

Factual and Procedural Summary

Denise and Thomas were married in 1971. In early November 1996, Bernadette Quercio formed a lottery pool with a group of her coworkers, including Denise. Each member of the pool contributed $5 per week. Denise contributed her $5 for a short time—three weeks—but, according to her papers, on December 1, 1996, or about that date, she withdrew from the pool.

In late December 1996, Ms. Quercio called Denise to…