Michael Casement v. Jamee Casement

Lincoln, Nebraska divorce lawyers represented the parties in a marriage dissolution act including property division.

In 2008, the parties purchased a plumbing and sewer repair business from Michael's father called Casement Trenching, LLC, that they operated as an S-Corporation. During the marriage, Michael did all of the fieldwork while Jamee served as the business' office manager.





In March 2021, Michael filed a complaint to dissolve the parties' marriage. Because the only issues relevant to this appeal involve the parties' marital home and the business, we limit the facts to those issues. In June, the district court entered a temporary order which, inter alia, provided the following regarding the parties' finances and business:



6. [Jamee] shall be the primary custodian of the parties' joint finances, including but not limited to any and all accounts of Casement Trenching, LLC. She shall continue to have the full right to withdraw, deposit and otherwise manage all account(s) funds as she has done in the past;



7. All revenue generated by Casement Trenching, LLC, shall be immediately deposited into the account(s) of Casement Trenching, LLC wherein [Jamee] is and shall be maintained as an owner and signatory and have all rights and privileges associated with said account;



8. [Michael] shall not tortiously interfere with the operations of Casement Trenching, LLC in any manner, including but not limited to, performing any "off-book" or moonlighting work;



9. [Jamee] shall pay all reoccurring monthly expenses of the parties utilizing the accounts of Casement Trenching, LLC, Said payments shall include, but not be limited to: mortgage payments, rent payments, credit card payments, utilities, auto loans, insurance premiums, and medical expenses in the same manner as she has done in the past;



10. That each party shall receive up to $3,000.00 every month, as living expenses to spend as they see fit, after all reoccurring monthly bills are paid. Said sums shall be paid utilizing the account(s) of Casement Trenching, LLC. In the event there is not sufficient funds to pay the parties on the first of every month, [Jamee] shall ensure that each party is paid in equal installments up to $3000.00 per month. In the event that [Michael] requires money for the month, Defendant shall not unreasonably withhold said funds.



11. [Jamee] shall be solely in charge of the Casement LLC bank accounts and shall be the only person allowed to withdraw funds from said accounts unless mutually agreed to in writing between the parties or until further order of the court.



Casement v. Casement, A-23-753 (Neb. App. Aug 27, 2024)

For the reasons stated above, we affirm the district court's determination of the value of Casement Trenching but reverse that part of the court's decree valuing the marital home at $344,000, and remand for the court to recalculate the equalization payment using $437,500 as the value of the marital home.