FAMILY LAW
Supreme Court of Alaska (2023)
Cara Shanahan
In Vang v. Pa, 531 P.3d 979 (Alaska 2023), the supreme court held that money transfers are not presumptively treated as gifts between parties who are not legally married and do not establish a domestic partnership at trial. (Id. at 984). Tong Vang and Pa Kou Xiong were in a three-year relationship, during which Xiong loaned Vang $38,000. (Id. at 980). Although they were married according to the customs of Hmong culture, the parties were never legally married. (Id.). Neither party sought to establish a marriage or domestic partnership at trial. (Id. at 984). The lower court ordered Vang to repay the loan given to him by Xiong during their relationship. (Id. at 982). Vang appealed, arguing that the court should apply a presumption that money transfers between close relatives, spouses and domestic partners are gifts rather than loans. (Id. at 983). Vang also challenged the superior court’s factual finding that Xiong had, in fact, loaned him $38,000 (Id.). Affirming the lower court’s decision, the supreme court reasoned that Vang had not offered facts to rebut Xiong’s evidence of the loan amount, nor did he establish that a domestic partnership or marriage existed between the parties. (Id. at 984-85). The supreme court upheld the factual findings and found that a presumption of gifts between close relatives does not apply when the parties do not establish a domestic partnership or marriage. (Id.).
