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This section contains the nature of the case and procedural background.

In 1999, Michael J. Thieme (P) began employment at a biometrics consulting firm, IBG. He worked over ninety hours a week and frequently traveled for his job. In late 2000 or early 2001, Thieme met Bernice F. Aucoin-Thieme (d). In May 2002, D discovered that she was pregnant, and P and D began to cohabitate. Their daughter was born in January 2003. The firm where P worked offered to compensate him for his contributions in the event that they sold the firm. P and D agreed that D would care for their daughter, maintain their residence, and manage their rental properties while P would work. They were not a happy couple. Eventually, in 2010, P and D wed. They filed for divorce fourteen months later. P restated his view that D would be entitled to a portion of any bonus he received upon the sale of the firm. P and D executed their Property Settlement Agreement. Three months later the firm was sold, and P was offered a one-time Closing Bonus of $2,250,000. D first learned of the Bonus when P deposited $200,000 into a bank account that had remained a joint account despite the divorce. D withdrew the deposited funds. P filed a complaint. The judge determined that D was entitled to thirty percent of the post-tax portion of the Bonus earned during their fourteen-month marriage. The court awarded $30,288, to D and ordered her to return the remaining amount that she had withdrawn from the joint account, totaling $169,712, to P. D appealed. The court affirmed, and D appealed again.

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