00:00You moved money out of the joint account three weeks before you filed. I have the statement.
00:03That was my money. I earned it. You had no claim to it then, and you have no claim to
00:07it now.
00:07It's a joint account, Logan. The word joint means both of us. That's not ambiguous.
00:12Oh, I know what joint means, okay? I also know what contribution means.
00:15A concept you're pretty fuzzy on for most of this marriage.
00:18I'm sorry. Did you just say that a concept...
00:20Just stating a fact.
00:22You're deflecting. You emptied an account that had both of our names on it,
00:26and you're standing here acting like you didn't...
00:27I didn't empty it. Okay, there was still $11,000 in there.
00:31Out of 42.
00:32My 42!
00:35Both of you, be quiet.
00:38Let the record show both parties have chosen to represent themselves without legal counsel.
00:44Is that correct?
00:46That's correct, Your Honor.
00:47Yes, Your Honor.
00:49Each party will have time to speak.
00:51Neither will interrupt the other.
00:53I will hear the financial dispute, assess the facts, and issue a ruling.
01:00Are those terms clear to both of you?
01:03Perfectly clear.
01:04Yes, Your Honor.
01:06Good.
01:07Mr. Logan, you may begin.
01:17Thank you, Your Honor.
01:19I want to start with the financial picture for this marriage, because I think that's where the real story is.
01:24Go ahead.
01:25I was a primary earner for nine of the 11 years we were married.
01:29The house is in my name.
01:30I opened the business account.
01:31The joint account was also mostly funded for my income.
01:34Almost entirely or entirely?
01:37Almost.
01:38She worked part-time for a few years.
01:40And she deposited those earnings into the joint account?
01:44Some of them.
01:45Okay, continue.
01:46The point is, I built the financial foundation of his household.
01:49And now I'm being asked to split everything as if the contributions were equal, which they were not.
01:55The dispute centers on the joint account balance at the time of separation?
01:59That's part of it, yes.
02:00But I also think the court should understand who it's dealing with here.
02:03The finances don't exist in a vacuum.
02:06Please limit your testimony to the financial matters.
02:10I understand, Your Honor.
02:11But her spending patterns directly affected the finances.
02:15That's relevant to the dispute.
02:17You may continue briefly.
02:19She had a habit of making financial decisions without consulting me.
02:23Purchases we hadn't discussed.
02:25Priorities that were hers alone.
02:27Can you give the court a specific example?
02:30She bought a car.
02:31Without telling me.
02:32Charged it to the credit line attached to the joint account.
02:35Did she tell you afterward?
02:37She mentioned it.
02:38After the fact, like it was nothing.
02:40And was the car for household use?
02:43She said it was.
02:44But I drove the old one.
02:46She got the new one.
02:47You tell me.
02:48I'm asking the questions, Mr. Logan.
02:51Yes, it was for the household use technically.
02:58In the final year of the marriage, she made withdrawals I wasn't notified about.
03:03Decisions about how money moved without telling me.
03:06Do you have documentation of those withdrawals?
03:08I have statements, yes.
03:10Were these withdrawals for household expenses?
03:12Some of them.
03:14Others I couldn't account for.
03:15That's the issue.
03:16Did you ask her about them at the time?
03:19I did.
03:20And I got vague answers.
03:22Well, you'll have opportunity to submit your statements.
03:26Continue.
03:27I built something over 11 years.
03:29I supported this household.
03:30And now I'm being asked to split it as if the contributions were equal.
03:34They weren't.
03:35The way she conducted herself in the final year made that very clear.
03:38What?
03:39Can I just say something really quick, actually?
03:42Can you wait your turn?
03:43You'll have your time to speak, Miss Lilly.
03:46Are you finished?
03:47Yes, Your Honor.
03:48I believe the record supports my position.
03:52You may sit down.
03:53Miss Lilly?
03:59Thank you, Your Honor.
04:03I'd like to start with the numbers.
04:05The joint account held $42,000 on March 3rd.
04:09By March 24th, the day Logan filed, it held $11,000.
04:13The withdrawals in between totaled $31,000.
04:16I have the bank records here dated and itemized.
04:19And were these withdrawals made without your knowledge?
04:22Without my consent, Your Honor.
04:24I was aware something was happening.
04:26I started documenting in February.
04:29And you have those records with you today?
04:31Everything is here.
04:32Printed copies for the court.
04:35Continue.
04:36I'd also like to address what Logan raised about the character of this marriage.
04:40He said the way I conducted myself in the final year was relevant.
04:44I agree.
04:45And what is it you want the court to understand about the final year?
04:49That I knew something was wrong long before I could prove it.
04:52And that I had spent most of that year trying to hold things together anyway.
04:56Why?
04:57Because I wasn't sure.
04:58And I didn't want to be wrong.
05:00And what changed?
05:02I stopped waiting to be sure and started paying attention instead.
05:05Oh, here we go.
05:08Miss Lilly?
05:09This marriage did not end because of my spending or my priorities.
05:14It ended because he was unfaithful.
05:16That is not true.
05:17I'm prepared to speak further on this matter if the court requires it.
05:22Your Honor, she cannot make an accusation like that without any evidence whatsoever.
05:27You will both have the opportunity to respond.
05:30Right now, the court needs a brief recess.
05:36You cannot do this.
05:38I haven't done anything yet.
05:40Bringing that into a courtroom.
05:42No, no, no, no.
05:43Listen, this is your last chance to get ahead of it.
05:46Tell the truth right now and I'll speak accordingly when the judge comes back in.
05:50I won't go easy on the financial question, but I'll be fair.
05:54Oh, you'll be fair.
05:56You know what fair looks like for me.
05:58And if I don't?
05:59Then you'll see what prepared looks like.
06:02You've been playing this for how long?
06:04Long enough.
06:05Since before you filed?
06:07Since before you emptied the account.
06:09So this, this whole thing, coming in here without a lawyer, the folder, the document.
06:14I didn't need a lawyer, Logan.
06:16I needed the bank records.
06:18And Sarah?
06:19Sarah made her own decision to be here.
06:21I didn't ask her.
06:22I told her what I was doing and she said she wanted to come.
06:26Of course she did.
06:27You did that, not me.
06:29You think you know everything, huh?
06:31I think I know enough.
06:33That's different.
06:34And Sarah, you two have been talking for how long?
06:37Long enough.
06:38There's nothing to confess.
06:40Okay.
06:41We'll see.
06:50Miss Lilley.
06:51I have one more thing to introduce before the ruling, Your Honor.
06:55I'd like the court's permission to call someone in from the hallway.
06:59On what basis?
07:00Testimony directly relevant to the circumstances of this marriage's end,
07:04which Logan raised first.
07:06Granted.
07:16Granted.
07:17Please identify yourself for the record.
07:20Sarah Ellison, I was in a relationship with Logan Mercer while he was married to Lily.
07:27And you're here voluntarily?
07:30Yes, Your Honor.
07:31You may continue.
07:33The relationship started about two years ago.
07:36He told me he was separated.
07:39That the marriage was done and everything but the paperwork was left.
07:43How long did the relationship continue?
07:46About 14 months.
07:47Before I started noticing things that didn't add up, I was not the woman on the side.
07:53I found that out the hard way.
07:56He was maintaining what I thought we had while staying fully in this marriage.
08:02And while seeing a third woman, I eventually found out about my own.
08:06How did you come to learn of all this?
08:08The same way Lily did, Your Honor.
08:10I started paying close attention.
08:12We found each other through that.
08:15Separately and then together.
08:17And you coordinated this appearance today?
08:19We coordinated being prepared.
08:21I'd say that's a different thing.
08:24This is a setup, Your Honor.
08:25They planned this entire thing.
08:27She has no standing here in this courtroom.
08:29She has no part of these proceedings.
08:31Sit down, Mr. Logan.
08:32Now.
08:36I've heard your objections.
08:38None of them address the substance of what this court was just presented.
08:43The financial settlement will reflect the full picture of this marriage, including the circumstances
08:49of its end.
08:50I am ruling in favor of Ms. Lilly on the primary financial dispute.
08:55The withdrawn funds are to be returned in full as part of the settlement.
09:01I'll note, for the record, that Ms. Ellison may have grounds for a separate civil proceeding
09:07and should consult legal counsel.
09:11Your Honor, you can't end it like this, okay?
09:12I have a right to respond to her testimony.
09:14She walked in here without notice, okay?
09:16I didn't have a chance to respond.
09:18This court is adjourned, Mr. Logan.
09:23And I need a drink.
09:29Dinner?
09:31Dinner.
09:33Bye.
