BOLLEN & BOLLEN

In *Bollen & Bollen*, the parties, having been married for a significant period, had agreed to an equal division of their assets. The dispute centred on the disposition of a property occupied by the husband, which he wished to retain, while the wife sought its sale and a division of the proceeds. The court ultimately ordered that the husband be given the opportunity to retain the property by paying the wife a lump sum to achieve an equal division of assets, with a provision for sale if he failed to make the payment.

The primary legal issues before the court concerned the valuation of the parties' real property and the treatment of legal fees. Specifically, the wife sought to adduce her own expert evidence regarding property valuations, despite the parties having initially appointed a single expert. Furthermore, the court had to determine whether legal fees, paid by both parties from a joint account and including fees incurred by the husband on behalf of their son, should be added back into the asset pool for division.

Macmillan J reasoned that while the wife initially disagreed with the single expert's valuation, her own expert and the single expert subsequently conferred and agreed on the value of the properties. Although the wife accepted the agreed value for the property she occupied, she sought to cross-examine her own expert regarding the valuation of the husband's property, believing it to be worth more. However, the court was satisfied with the valuations and did not consider a sale necessary to achieve a just and equitable outcome. Regarding legal fees, the court determined that in the circumstances, the legal fees expended by both parties, including those paid by the husband for their son, should be added back into the asset pool.