Wallace v. Torres-Rodriguez
A husband secretly transferred roughly $5 million in tenancy-by-the-entireties assets (cash, stocks, and three condominiums) to his longtime paramour without his wife's consent and in violation of a marital agreement and irrevocable trust. After a bench trial, the court imposed a constructive trust but allowed the recipient to keep three assets under the Restatement (Third) of Restitution § 65 'change of position' principle. The Third DCA affirmed the constructive trust but reversed the partial retention, holding the change-of-position defense was waived because unpleaded and, in any event, unavailable to a recipient with notice of the facts underlying the restitution claim.
Key facts
- Husband secretly transferred approximately $5 million in tenancy-by-the-entireties assets (cash, stocks, and three condominiums) to his longtime paramour without his wife's consent, in violation of a marital agreement and irrevocable trust.
- After a bench trial, the trial court imposed a constructive trust on the transferred assets but allowed the recipient to retain three assets under the Restatement (Third) of Restitution § 65 'change of position' defense.
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Why it matters
This is a useful roadmap for practitioners litigating recovery of tenancy-by-the-entireties assets dissipated by one spouse, confirming that the transferee carries a clear-and-convincing burden to show consent and that… — full analysis with a trial
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