Washington court upholds deal after couple split again, leaving wife without bank and stock assets

A divorce settlement can settle who owns an asset on paper, but what happens when a couple gets back together and later separates again? A Washington woman faced this situation after remarrying her former husband and separating again approximately eight months later.

Although their first divorce settlement had awarded her half of several bank accounts and stock assets, most remained in her former husband's name. When they divorced again, a new property agreement and arbitration decision left her without those assets.In an unpublished opinion dated November 3, 2026, the Washington Court of Appeals, Division II, upheld the lower court's decision in In the Matter of the Marriage of William Gibbs and Joy Ann Gibbs, case number 60590-2-II.

The ruling, available on Justia, affirmed an arbitration award favouring William Gibbs and rejected Joy Gibbs' attempt to challenge the decision through a request for a new trial. The court also awarded William reasonable attorney fees for the appeal.The first divorce divided their propertyWilliam and Joy Gibbs married in 1998 and divorced in 2021.