Marriage went to pot, but who gets the money?
A B.C. couple who ran a lucrative but illegal marijuana growing business for two decades found themselves in a tricky situation when their marriage went to pot.
During a bitter divorce battle, they tried to divvy up their illicit weed assets.
The Smiths were married for 30 years but separated five years ago, according to B.C. Supreme Court documents filed this week in Vancouver. They have two daughters, one who is a teacher and the other a lawyer.
The court says the Smiths were engaged in a successful “family business” growing and selling pot for more than 20 years in Alberta, B.C. and California.
But because of the illegal nature of the business, their income was received in cash and they didn’t keep accurate books. The court says the couple’s evidence of sales was “oral, inferential, thin and often contradictory,” and as such they lacked credibility.
“The evidence of both parties relating to the details of the marijuana grow operations, and the cash generated from that business, was unreliable. I was asked to draw inferences from recollections, which were inconsistent and unsupported by helpful documentary evidence,” said Justice Wendy Baker.
The couple ran several growing operations, and owned homes over the years in Coquitlam, then Langley, California and La Paz, Mexico. They later bought a home in Grand Forks, B.C. The documents show the Smiths started with a grow-op at the Coquitlam property in 1987 and then later operated one out of the California house.
The court says they were licensed to grow medical marijuana in Grand Forks at their property, though Mrs. Smith testified it was just a cover for their illegal business.
The judge ruled that if Mrs. Smith exercises her right to the Grand Forks home, Mr. Smith will transfer his share of the property to Mrs. Smith. And if not, the property will be sold, and the money divided up.
The Smiths were also ordered to equally divide the money from the sale of their Mexican property. The proceeds of the sale of their Calgary home will also be divided, with Mrs. Smith to receive $46,771.57 and Mr. Smith to receive $109,609.
The judge also ruled that Mr. Smith pay Mrs. Smith spousal support in a lump sum of $134,694.