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Ritter v. Mantissa Investment Corp.1/19/2005
At the crux of this appeal lies the somewhat curious question of "Who owns the Nunnery?" Despite the perhaps pious intentions of the parties, a formerly married couple, they now ask us to sift through a Panamanian corporation, two Bahamian trusts, and a divorce proceeding to determine that very question. More specifically, a Superior Court motion justice dismissed the multi-count complaint brought by the plaintiff, Michele Ritter (plaintiff), alleging partial ownership of real estate in Newport, Rhode Island, against her ex-husband, the defendant, Donald Ritter (defendant), and his Panamanian corporation, Mantissa Investment Corporation (Mantissa). Relying on a 1987 trust document, the plaintiff appeals, alleging that the motion justice misconstrued the nature of her claim in finding that the divorce proceeding and the separation agreement barred her suit. Instead, the plaintiff argues that, through a trust, the defendant granted her shares in the corporation and, therefore, co-ownership in the property, during the marriage and that the subsequent divorce did not alter that ownership in any way.
We agree and accordingly vacate the judgment of the Superior Court.
I. Facts and Travel
When plaintiff and defendant married in 1982, defendant owned property on Ocean Avenue in Newport, Rhode Island, known as the "Nunnery." The Nunnery served as the family residence during the marriage. In 1986, defendant formed Mantissa, a Panamanian corporation with a principal place of business in Panama and the Bahamas. In December 1987, defendant conveyed the Nunnery to Mantissa through a warranty deed.
In May 1987, before the conveyance of the Nunnery, Worldwide Trust Services Limited, a Bahamian corporation, executed two separate documents on behalf of defendant, both allocating shares of Mantissa in trust. The first document, dated May 8, 1987 (first trust), "exclusively vested" the "beneficial interest in and ownership of the 100 (One hundred) fully paid up shares issued to Bearer represented by share certificate Number 1 of Mantisa Investment Corporation" with plaintiff and defendant as dual beneficiaries with a right of survivorship. The second document, dated May 10, 1987 (second trust), "exclusively vested" the "beneficial interest in and ownership of One hundred (100) fully paid up Bearer shares numbered 1-100 represented by share certificate No. 1 of Mantisa Investment Corporation" with defendant as the sole beneficiary.
The plaintiff filed for divorce in October 1999. The parties entered into a property settlement agreement (agreement), after considerable negotiation evidenced by numerous handwritten revisions and deletions, and proceeded on the nominal divorce calendar before a Family Court justice. The defendant agreed to pay plaintiff the sum of $1.5 million, resolving the "rights and obligations growing out of the marriage relation." The agreement included a list of certain property to be divided between the parties, but that list did not address ownership of the Nunnery specifically, nor did it contain a residuary clause assigning property not delineated therein. The only references to the Nunnery in the agreement were: plaintiff agreed to vacate the house by a certain time, furnishings in the home were to be divided equally between the parties, and the house would provide security for the $1.5 million to be paid to plaintiff. Finally, the agreement included a mutual release in full satisfaction of the rights of each of the parties.
Ownership of Mantissa was mentioned at the divorce hearing when the Family Court justice questioned plaintiff:
"The Court: Did I hear that the house was in the name of the corporation?
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