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In re Estate of Borghi, 167 Wash.2d 480, 219 P.3d 932

Facts

Jeanette L. Borghi purchased a parcel of real property in 1966, prior to her marriage to Robert Borghi in 1975. After their marriage, a deed was executed in both their names, but Jeanette died intestate in 2005, leading to a dispute between her son from a previous marriage and Robert over the property’s classification. The Superior Court ruled the property was community property, but the Court of Appeals reversed this decision, leading to the Supreme Court's review.

Jeanette L. Borghi purchased a parcel of real property in 1966, subject to a real estate contract. The record contains no evidence concerning the terms of or payments under the contract.

Issue

Whether the real property acquired by Jeanette Borghi prior to her marriage changed in character from separate property to community property due to the inclusion of Robert Borghi's name on the deed.

The question in this case is whether the real property acquired by Jeanette Borghi prior to her marriage to Robert Borghi changed in character from her separate property to community property by the time of her death.

Rule

The character of property as separate or community is established at the date of acquisition, and a presumption arises that property remains separate unless there is clear and convincing evidence of intent to transmute it to community property.

Once the separate character of property is established, a presumption arises that it remained separate property in the absence of sufficient evidence to show an intent to transmute the property from separate to community property.

Analysis

The court analyzed the evidence and determined that the inclusion of Robert's name on the deed did not provide sufficient evidence of Jeanette's intent to change the character of the property from separate to community. The court emphasized that the presumption of separate property remained unless there was direct evidence to the contrary, which was not present in this case.

The Estate argues that clear and convincing evidence of a transfer of Jeanette Borghi's separate property to community property exists based on the inclusion of Robert Borghi's name on the deed to the property subsequent to the marriage.

Conclusion

The Supreme Court affirmed the Court of Appeals' decision, holding that the property remained Jeanette Borghi's separate property at the time of her death.

We hold that the property acquired by Jeanette Borghi prior to her marriage to Robert Borghi was presumptively her separate property.

Who won?

Jeanette Borghi's estate prevailed in the case because the court found that the property was her separate property, not community property, based on the lack of evidence showing an intent to transmute it.

The Court of Appeals' conclusion was correct, but its discussion of Deschamps and Hurd highlights a misunderstanding of the applicable presumption and underscores the confusion created by the Hurd opinion.

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