A17-0300

This opinion will be unpublished and
may not be cited except as provided by
Minn. Stat. § 480A.08, subd. 3 (2016).

STATE OF MINNESOTA
IN COURT OF APPEALS
A16-2049
A17-0300

In re the Marriage of:
Alexander K. Antzaras, petitioner,
Appellant,

vs.

Triantafilia Rose Moshou-Antzaras,
Respondent.

Filed October 2, 2017
Affirmed
Halbrooks, Judge

Ramsey County District Court
File No. 62-FA-14-1922

Erik F. Hanse n, Patrick C. Burns, Elizabeth M. Cadem, Burns & Hanson, P.A.,
Minneapolis, Minnesota (for appellant)

Lisa M. Elliott, Elliott Law Offices, P.A., Minneapolis, Minnesota (for respondent)

Considered and decided by Peterson, Presiding Judge; Halbrooks, Judge; and Smith,
Tracy M., Judge.
U N P U B L I S H E D O P I N I O N
HALBROOKS, Judge
In this consolidated appeal regarding the division of property following a marriage
dissolution, appellant argues that the district court erred by excluding evidence and

2
testimony from his expert appraiser on the premarital value of the homestead before
improvements were made during the marriage. He also challenges the division of property,
arguing that the district court erred in its (1) calculation and valuation of the parties’ marital
equity in the homestead, (2) division of the parties’ financial accounts and debts,
(3) disposition of nonmarital property, (3) determination to include a no-contact provision
against him in the judgment and decree , and (4) award of conduct -based attorney fees to
respondent. We affirm.
FACTS
Appellant Alexander Antzaras and respondent Triantafilia Rose Moshou-Antzaras
were married on November 24, 2012. Prior to the marriage, Antzaras owned a homestead
in Shoreview. Remodeling of the homestead was done following the wedding. The parties
separated on June 3, 2014, and Antzaras petitioned for dissolution.
The district court ordered that discovery “was to be completed by August 28,” and
scheduled trial on November 18, 2015. An expert appraiser retained by Moshou-Antzaras
valued the homestead at $220,000 as of the time of separation, and both parties stipulated
to that valuation. Two weeks before trial, Antzaras disclosed that he had hired an expert
to appraise the value of the homestead and informed Moshou-Antzaras that he planned to
have his expert testify at trial. Moshou -Antzaras moved to exclude his expert ’s opinions
and testimony based on late disclosure. After hearing argument on the first day of the
bench trial, the district court granted the motion.
During trial, the district court heard testimony from Antzaras, Moshou -Antzaras,
and Moshou-Antzaras’s expert. Antzaras and Moshou -Antzaras testified to the extent of

3
the home improvements made during the marriage; bank and retirement accounts , and
expenses; Moshou -Antzaras’s nonmarital property that r emained in the homestead;
Moshou-Antzaras’s request for inclusion of a no-contact provision in the dissolution
judgment and decree; and the merits of a conduct -based attorney -fee award. Moshou-
Antzaras’s expert testified to the valuation of the marital equity in the homestead based on
the improvements made during the marriage.
The district court concluded that the marital equity in the homestead was $38,000
and awarded the homestead to Antzaras . The district court ordered Antzaras to return
Moshou-Antzaras’s nonmarital property to her and to permit her to enter the homestead to
search for any nonmarital items not returned. The district court also included a no-contact
provision in the judgment and decree, awarded Moshou-Antzaras $6,129 in conduct-based
attorney fees, and ordered Antzaras to pay Moshou-Antzaras a cash equalizer amount of
$30,031.62.
Antzaras moved to stay enforcement of the property division and requested that the
district court amend its findings of fact. Following a hearing, the dist rict court amended
the finding of fact that described the homestead but denied the remainder of the motion.
This appeal follows.
D E C I S I O N
I.
Antzaras argues that the district court erred by excluding his expert’s testimony and
opinions regarding the value of the homestead. “When a party seeks to introduce expert
testimony not previously noticed, determination of the appropriate remedy is within the

4
[district] court’s discretion.” Quill v. Trans World Airlines, Inc. , 361 N.W.2d 438, 445
(Minn. App. 1985). The district court’s determination “will not be disturbed unless it is
based on an erroneous view of the law or constitutes an abuse of discretion.” Kroning v.
State Farm Auto. Ins. Co., 567 N.W.2d 42, 45-46 (Minn. 1997) (quotation omitted).
In general, “expert testimony should be suppressed for failure to make a timely
disclosure of the expert’s identity only where counsel’s dereliction [in failing to make the
disclosure] is inexcusable and results in disadvantage to his opponent.” Dennie v. Metro.
Med. Ctr., 387 N.W.2d 401, 405 (Minn. 1986) (alteration in original) (quotation omitted);
see Quill, 361 N.W.2d at 445 (concluding that exclusion of expert testimony disclosed “one
week before trial” was not an abuse of discretion). T he crucial qu estion is whether the
party against whom the evidence is offered “has been prejudiced to any appreciable degree
by the late disclosure.” Dennie, 387 N.W.2d at 405.
Antzaras submitted his trial exhibit list on November 5, 2015, which, for the first
time, disclosed that he had retained an expert to appraise the value of the homestead and
that he intended to call the expert as a witness and offer his report into evidence. 1 In
response to Moshou-Antzaras’s motion to exclude, Antzaras argued that the disclosure was
timely; he did not request a continuance. The district court considered the matter on the
first day of trial and , after hearing the parties’ arguments, excluded the evidence and the
testimony of Antzaras’s expert on the ground that it “was a discovery violation.”

1 The expert’s report was dated November 3, 2015.

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Antzaras contends that his disclosure was timely because the scheduling order set
the final discovery date as November 4, 2015. The record does not support his argument.
Following the pretrial conference on September 17, 2015, th e district court issued a final
scheduling order that directed the parties to confer and disclose the witnesses and evidence
they planned to use at trial. The district court stated that “discovery was to be completed
by August 28, following the parties’ t elephone conference on August 8, 2015.” B ased on
the district court’s discovery deadline of August 28, 2015, Antzaras’s disclosure was not
timely.
Citing Minn. R. Civ. P. 26.05, which addresses supplementation of discovery
responses, Antzaras contends that he had no obligation to update his discovery responses
until he had obtained the appraisal. But this argument fails to address the fact that his initial
disclosure occurred after the close of discovery. This was not a circumstance of updating
previous discovery responses as contemplated by the rule.
Antzaras contends, alternatively, that even if his disclosure was not timely, Moshou-
Antzaras was not prejudiced by his late disclosure because she had sufficient time to
prepare her expert to respond to it . Although the district court did not explicitly address
prejudice, prejudice can reasonably be inferred based on the timing of the decision on the
day of trial.
On appeal, Antzaras argues for the first time that the district court should have
granted a continuance to permit Moshou-Antzaras time to prepare a response to his expert
instead of excluding his expert . Because Antzaras failed to make this argument to the
district court, we decline to address it on appeal. See Thiele v. Stich, 425 N.W.2d 580, 582

6
(Minn. 1988). We conclude that the district court did not abuse its discretion by excluding
Antzaras’s expert.
II.
Antzaras contends that the district court erred in its determination that the marital
equity of the homestead was $3 5,842.06. “A [district] court has broad discretion in
evaluating and dividing property in a marital dissolution and will not be overturned except
for abuse of discretion.” Antone v. Antone, 645 N.W.2d 96, 100 (Minn. 2002). Appellate
courts will affirm a district court’s property division if it has an acceptable basis even
though a different approach may also be reasonable. Id.
Upon dissolution of a marriage, the district court must “make a just and equitable
division of the marital property.” Minn. Stat. § 518.58, subd. 1 (2016). Property acquired
before the parties’ marriage is nonmarital property. Minn. Stat. § 518.003, subd. 3b (2016).
But property can have “both marital and nonmarital aspects.” Schmitz v. Schmitz , 309
N.W.2d 748, 750 (Minn. 1981).
A. Factual Findings Regarding Marital Equity in the Homestead
A district court’s valuation of an item of property is a finding of fact, and it will not
be set aside unless it is clearly erroneous on the record as a whole. Maurer v. Maurer, 623
N.W.2d 604, 606 (Minn. 2001). But we do not require the district court to be exact in its
valuation of assets; “it is only necessary that the value arrived at lies within a reasonable
range of figures.” Johnson v. Johnson, 277 N.W.2d 208, 211 (Minn . 1979) (citing Hertz
v. Hertz, 304 Minn. 144, 145, 229 N.W.2d 42, 44 (1975)). The district court stated that

7
Antzaras “believes the marital equity in the home is only approximately $8,000, based
solely on the increase in market value and not on any of the improvements.”
Antzaras argues that he never claimed an increase in the value of the homestead
based on market forces alone. But he testified at trial as follows:
Q What do you estimate the value [of the homestead] to
have been on the date of your marriage?
A Around 210,000.
Q And what do you base that estimate on?
A On page 7, the market data that was supplied under
District 621—that’s the closest comparison for my home—has
a May 2013 median sales price of 220,00[0], which is about six
months after the date of marriage.
Q And what else about that information is your basis for
that $210,000?
A In the last sentence, you know, comments that the prices
increased slightly into 2013 and have leveled off, so taking into
account the 220, backing out, you know, the improvements
we’ve talked about and some appreciation, I think around a
$10,000 increase over 18 months would be reasonable for a
home.

Although Antzaras’s testimony that the value of the homestead increased $10,000 is greater
than the $8,000 the district court found, we conclude that the district court’s finding is not
clearly erroneous. It is supported by the record, and the valuation need only be within a
reasonable range.
B. Calculation of the Marital Interest in the Homestead
Antzaras contends that the district court erred in its calculation of the marital equity
in the homestead because there was no finding of the value of the homestead at the time of
marriage. The Minnesota Supreme Court has instructed district courts to use the following
formula to calculate the marital and nonmarital interests in property:

8
The present value of a nonmarital asset used in the
acquisition of marital property is the proportion the net equity
or contribution at the time of acquisition bore to the value of
the property at the time of purchase multiplied by the value of
the property at the time of separation. The remainder of equity
increase is characterized as marital property . . . .

Antone, 645 N.W.2d at 102 (quotation omitted); accord Schmitz v. Schmitz , 309 N.W.2d
748, 750 (Minn. 1981). “[T]he increase in the value of nonmarital property attributable to
the efforts of one or both spouses during their marriage, like the increase resulting from the
application of marital funds, is marital property. ” Nardini v. Nardini , 414 N.W.2d 184,
192 (Minn. 1987). And a “spouse claiming that property is nonmarital must prove the
necessary underlying facts by a preponderance of the evidence.” Johnson v. Johnson, 388
N.W.2d 47, 49 (Minn. App. 1986).
Here, the parties stipulated , based on the appraisal of Robert Lear, Moshou-
Antzaras’s expert, that the homestead was properly calculated to be $220,000 as of the
dissolution valuation date. Lear also made a hypothetical appraisal of the value of the
homestead on June 3, 2014, assuming no improvements to the homestead had been made.
He opined that that value of the homestead was $190,000. Lear testified, and the district
court subsequently found, “that the improvements to the home made during the marriage
increased the value of the home by $30,000.”
Antzaras argues that the district court erred by failing to follow the Schmitz formula
and that he alone provided evidence that the value of his homestead at the date of marriage
was “[a]round [$]210,000.” But that value was based on his opinion alone. Antzaras failed
to provide any credible evidence of the homestead valuation at the time of marriage. Cf.

9
Eisenschenk v. Eisenschenk, 668 N.W.2d 235, 243 (Minn. App. 2003) (concluding that the
district court’s disposition on the propriety of income was not clearly erroneous because
the appellant lacked credible evidence to support her claim) , review denied (Minn. Nov.
25, 2003). Because the district court did not have a valuation of the homestead at the time
of marriage, we conclude that the district court did not err by using the Nardini calculation
and calculating the marital portion of the homestead based on the improvements made
during the marriage.
Finally, Antzaras argues that the district court erred in concluding that all
appreciation during the marriage was marital because it should have split the appreciation
between marital and nonmarital interests. “[A]n increase in the value of nonmarital
property attributable to inflation or to market forces or conditions, retains its nonmarital
character.” Nardini, 414 N.W.2d at 192. Because Antzaras did not provide evidence of
the increase in value based on market forces alone, the distr ict court did not err. We
conclude the district court did not abuse its discretion in the calculation and disposition of
the marital equity in the homestead.
III.
Antzaras argues that the district court erred in its division of financial accounts and
debts of the parties. We review a district court’s evaluation and division of marital property
for an abuse of its discretion. Antone, 645 N.W.2d at 100. Antzaras challenges the district
court’s findings with respect to three different financial accounts, which we address in turn.

10
A. Patriot Bank Account
The Patriot Bank account was a joint account held by Moshou -Antzaras and her
mother that “contain[ed] funds from a premarital gift [Moshou -Antzaras] received from
her grandmother.” It accumulated $1,174.66 in passive interest during the marriage. The
district court found that “only half of the interest could be construed as marital,” but that
“it is fair that the interest [Moshou -Antzaras] earned on this premarital asset not be
included” because Antzaras refused to file a joint tax return in 2014.
Antzaras argues that the district court erred in awarding Moshou -Antzaras all
interest generated from this account because one-half of the interest was a marital asset,
and both parties paid taxes on most of the interest. “[I]ncome from a nonmarital investment
is marital property.” Johnson, 388 N.W.2d at 49. Income includes “any passive
appreciation in value.” Swick v. Swick, 467 N.W.2d 328, 331 (Minn. App. 1991), review
denied (Minn. May 16, 1991). But we do not require the district court to be exact in its
valuation of assets; “it is only necessary that the value arrived at lies within a reasonable
range of figures.” Johnson, 277 N.W.2d at 211.
The district court found that Antzaras “refused to fi le a joint return in 2014, and
claimed all of the interest and real estate taxes on the parties’ homestead on his ‘head of
household’ return.” It also found that Moshou-Antzaras’s tax liability greatly increased
because she was forced to file her taxes separately. Because Antzaras claimed both parties’
interest and real estate tax on his 2014 tax returns, which increased her tax liability, we
conclude that the district court did not abuse its discretion in deciding that it was equitable
to award the interest from this account to Moshou-Antzaras.

11
B. Wells Fargo Account
The parties had a joint Wells Fargo checking account that was “used to pay
household expenses during the marriage.” The parties each withdrew funds from this
account after their separation —Antzaras withdrew a total of $30,000 and Moshou -
Antzaras withdrew a total of $14,821. The district court captured those withdrawals in its
equalizer-payment calculation. With the exception of her withdrawals, Moshou-Antzaras
did not use this account after June 3, 2014.
Antzaras asserts that the calculation of the equalizer payment is erroneous because
the district court did not account for various joint expenses that he incurred prior to the
parties’ separation. He challenges the following expenses:
Description Date Amount
Credit card balance paid for May expenses 7/1/14 $4,948
Utilities payments 7/1/14 $738
Payment to clear negative balance 8/13/14 $704
Overdraft fees payment 7/30/14 $70

Although the district court did not mention these expenses specifically, it did state
that it would not include “various overdraft charges and transfers from [Antzaras’s]
individual account to this account in order to cover expenses paid after the valuation date.”
It reasoned that “the additional deductions from [his] individual account cannot be tied to
any particular marital expense , and it appears [he] is attempting to ‘double dip’ for the
withdrawals and/or expense already addressed elsewhere.” Because Antzar as failed to
provide documentation that established that these expenses were incurred during the
marriage, we conclude that the district court did not err by excluding these expenses from
its calculation.

12
Antzaras also claims the district court erred by failing to include a $500 drywall
expense that was incurred prior to the parties’ separation . Moshou-Antzaras argues that
the drywall expense should not be included in the calculation because the district court
awarded Antzaras $6,000 “for the premarital purchase of material used in the remodel
during the marriage,” which included drywall materials. Because this expense was for
labor—not material—and because it was not a premarital expense, the calculation should
have been included in the equalizing payment. But we “refus[e] to remand for a de minimis
error.” See Risk ex rel. Miller v. Stark, 787 N.W.2d 690, 694 n.1 (Minn. App. 2010), review
denied (Minn. Nov. 16, 2010) (concluding that a $400 error in calculation by th e district
court was de minimis) . We conclude that because the $500 error by the district court in
the calculation of the equalizer payment is de minimis , it is not a sufficient basis for a
remand.
C. Fairview Health Services Retirement Account
Antzaras had a retirement savings account that he contributed to before and during
the marriage. The parties dispute the exact balance of the account on the date of their
marriage on November 24, 2012, and Antzaras did not provide one. But he did provide a
quarterly statement from October 1, 2012 to December 31, 2012. The district court
concluded:
It would not be fair to use the balance of this account as of
December 31, 2012, simply because [Antzaras] failed to
provide the actual balance as of the date of marria ge, over a
month earlier. It is fair and equitable to use the estimate [d]
balance as of the date of marriage based on the total
contributions during the three months shown on the statement
[he] provided.

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The district court deducted $1,141.08 as Antzaras’s nonmarital interest, rather than
$1,614.78, the amount that he requested.
Antzaras asserts that the district court abused its discretion by treating his quarterly
statement differently at the time of mar riage versus the time of separation , but he cites no
authority to support his assertion. The district court stated that it was not fair to view the
evidence in his favor because he failed to provide a balance of the account on the date of
marriage. We conclude that the district court’s decision is not an abuse of its discretion.
Antzaras also argues that the district court erred in its division of the retirement
savings account because it did not include in his nonmarital interest the increase in
appreciation due solely to his premarital shares . But because he did not raise this issue in
his posttrial motion to the district court, we have no finding to review.
We conclude that the district court did not abuse its discretion in its division of the
parties’ financial accounts and debts and that any error in the district court’s calculations
was de minimis.
IV.
Antzaras argues that the district court abused its discretion in its valuation and
disposition of Moshou -Antzaras’s nonmarital property. A district court abuses its
discretion in dividing property if it resolves the matter in a manner “that is against logic
and the facts on record.” Rutten v. Rutten , 347 N.W.2d 47, 50 (Minn. 1984). A district
court’s valuation of an item of property is a finding of fact, and it will not be set aside
unless it is clearly erroneous on the record as a whole. Maurer v. Maurer , 623 N.W.2d

14
604, 606 (Minn. 2001). The district court’s valuation of property must be “within a
reasonable range of figures.” Johnson, 277 N.W.2d at 211.
At the time of their separation, Moshou -Antzaras left the homestead with only her
purse and iPad—she left the rest of her nonmarital property in the homestead. She returned
to the homestead two times to recover some of her nonmarital property and prepared a list
of her nonmarital property remaining at the homestead that she presented to the district
court that included an Apple MacBook laptop, a Canon Rebel Digital SLR camera, and
diamond earrings.
The district court found credible Moshou-Antzaras’s testimony regarding her
nonmarital property. And we “defer to the district court’s credibility determinations.”
Kremer v. Kremer, 827 N.W.2d 454, 4 58 (Minn. App. 2013), review denied (Minn. Apr.
16, 2013). The district court also concluded that Moshou-Antzaras’s proposed division of
the parties’ wedding shower and wedding gifts was fair and equitable. Because Antzaras
claimed at trial that he did not have many of these items, the district court ordered:
Wife is awarded all items of pers onal property
identified on the list attached hereto as Exhibit B. Husband
shall search for all items on the list and return them to Wife in
good condition within ten (10) days of the date of the Order. If
all items are not returned to Wife within ten (1 0) days, Wife
shall be allowed a period of four hours, on a date to be chosen
by Wife, to have access to Husband’s home to search for the
remaining items on the Exhibit B. For those items not returned
nor found by either party, Wife may replace them, to the extent
possible, and provide receipts to Husband. Husband shall
reimburse Wife for the replacement costs within ten (10) days
of being provided a copy of the receipt.

15
Antzaras contends that the district court’s order is an abuse of its discretion because
it permits Moshou -Antzaras to replace used items with new ones. We conclude that the
district court acted within its discretion because replacement of these items is “within a
reasonable range of figures.” See Johnson, 277 N.W.2d at 211. The majority of the items
on her list are either family heirlooms or were purchased as engagement gifts prior to the
wedding, and the remainder of items are clothing.
Antzaras also argues that Moshou-Antzaras’s list of personal-property descriptions
is not sufficiently specific and enables her to, at any time she may remember an additional
item of clothing, force him to pay for it. But the district court’s order awards her only “all
items of personal property identi fied” in the list attached to its judgment . The list of her
nonmarital property includes specific details about each item and its last known location in
the homestead. Because the ruling is not against logic and reasonably identifies the
nonmarital property at issue, the district court did not abuse its discretion in its disposition
of Moshou-Antzaras’s nonmarital property.
V.
Antzaras contends that the district court erred by including a no-contact order in the
judgment and decree that was based on a stipulation he did not agree to . We review a
district court’s determination of parties’ stipulations for an abuse of discretion. Pekarek v.
Wilking, 380 N.W.2d 161, 163 (Minn. App. 1986). “Courts favor stipulations in
dissolution cases as a means of simplifying and ex pediting litigation, and to bring
resolution to what frequently has become an acrimonious relationship between the parties.”
Shirk v. Shirk, 561 N.W.2d 519, 521 (Minn. 1997).

16
Stipulations are “accorded the sanctity of binding contracts.” Id. An enforceable
contract “requires merely that the parties’ intent as to the fundamental terms of the contract
can be ascertained with reasonable certainty.” Anderson v. Sommer , 381 N.W.2d 22, 24
(Minn. App. 1986) (quotation omitted).
In its order following the ini tial case -management conference, the district court
stated that “the parties will be filing a stipulation and proposed order which dismissed the
Order for Protection and Orders n o contact in this the family court proceeding.” 2 In
exchange, Antzaras would agree to inclusion of a no -contact order in the dissolution
judgment. The record reflects that counsel for Antzaras agreed to draft a stipulation but
did not follow through. On appeal, Antzaras maintains that he never agreed to a stipulation.
At trial, Antzaras did not deny that he agreed to a stipulation but he disagreed with
the purported duration or restrictions, testifying as follows:
Q The no contact request they’re making, what is your
recollection of the agreement that was made at the ICMC
regarding the OFP and continuing this into the family court?
What’s your recollection?
A Well, from the ICMC and actually from the beginning
of the initial hearing in front of [the referee], it was going to be
dismissed and no contact language be put in, basically, you
know, for the duration of the period, June 6th of 2016.
Q No contact between the two of you?
A Yeah, no contact —that was my understanding —no
contact between us. It would be dismissed and language would
be put into the divorce decree.
Q But you don’t agree that —you never agreed to being
restrained from attending your church?
A No, I never agreed to that.

2 Moshou-Antzaras had previously obtained an ex parte order for protection that was in
effect until June 5, 2016.

17
Q And you never agreed to be restrained from your place
of employment because you guys are at the same place of
employment, the same building sometimes, are you not?
A We’re in different buildings, but sometimes I could
have meetings at the building she’s at, so that’s one of the
reasons I asked for an exception throughout this, you know,
last year.
Q Is there any type of no contact language you would
agree to that would be within your comfort zone of this
proceeding?
A Yeah, I mean, I thought it made sense and my
understanding that there would be no contact between us, but
both of us.

Moshou-Antzaras also testified regarding her understanding of the parties’ stipulation and
the no-contact provision:
Specifically, the no contact clauses that require [Antzaras] to
have no direct or indirect contact with me, to not be found
within a quarter-mile radius of where I am; to be fo rbidden to
be at the place where I live, or at my place of business or with
the place where I work.

The district court included the following provision in the dissolution judgment:
Husband, Alexander K. Antzaras, shall not have any contact
with Wife, Tria ntafilia Rose Moshou -Antzaras, whether in
person, by telephone, mail, or electronic mail or message,
through a third party or by any other means. Husband is also
prohibited from calling or entering Wife’s place of
employment or to be within a two city block o[r] ¼ mile radius,
whichever is greater, of Wife’s current or future home and
workplace. Husband may enter the building where Wife works
only to attend meetings required by his employer.

We defer to the district court’s credibility determinations and finding that Moshou-
Antzaras is in continued fear of Antzaras. See Kremer, 827 N.W.2d at 463. The district
court did not abuse its discretion by including the no-contact provision in the decree.

18
VI.
Antzaras contends that the district court abused its discretion by awarding conduct-
based attorney fees to Moshou -Antzaras. We review an award of conduct -based fees for
an abuse of discretion. Szarzynski v. Szarzynski, 732 N.W.2d 285, 295 (Minn. App. 2007);
see Reinke v. Reinke , 464 N.W.2d 513, 516 (Minn. App. 1990) (stating that an award of
attorney fees will rarely be reversed). A district court may award conduct -based fees
“against a party who unreasonably contributes to the length or expense of the proceeding.”
Minn. Stat. § 518.14, subd. 1 (2016).
The district court concluded that Antzaras’s “actions resulted in unnecessarily
increasing the length and costs in th[e] proceeding” and ordered him to pay Moshou -
Antzaras $6,129 in conduct-based attorney fees. It found that Antzaras (1) failed to provide
Moshou-Antzaras with documentation vital to the financial early neutral evaluation
(FENE) process, (2) failed to respond to informal and formal discovery requests,
(3) withheld other relevant information and documentation, and (4) attempted to aband on
his agreement to draft and include a no -contact provision in the judgment and decree. It
also found that Moshou-Antzaras unreasonably incurred additional attorney fees to prepare
a motion in limine objecting to Antzaras’s expert’s appraisal and testimo ny because he
informed her and the district court of this evidence “well after discovery was closed.”
Finally, the district court found that Antzaras’s actions surrounding the return of Moshou -
Antzaras’s personal property provided a basis for the conduct-based fee award because he
(1) denied her access to the homestead to prepare an inventory of her personal property,
(2) failed to return “a large number” of her items of personal property that included

19
“heirloom jewelry and bedding, and an antique clarinet,” (3) refused her access to any joint
marital household goods and furnishings, (4) claimed certain property as marital despite
“strong evidence” that the items were hers prior to the marriage, and (5) in bad faith
delivered “essentially four boxes of garbage” to her attorney’s office.
Antzaras contends that the record does not support the district court’s conclusion
and findings and that the findings related to the FENE proceeding are improper because
the FENE was confidential. The district court’s order appointing an evaluator for an FENE
proceeding states that “[e]vidence produced during the FENE not otherwise discoverable
remains confidential. Impressions or opinions made by the evaluator or any other neutral
who participates in the process shall remain confidential.” The order also directs the parties
to provide specific documentation to facilitate the proceeding. We conclude that the
district court did not abuse its discretion by considering Antzaras’s failure to provide this
documentation in its decision to award attorney fees.
Antzaras argues that he did not delay discovery unnecessarily or unreasonably;
rather, he was confused about the timing of Moshou-Antzaras’s requests because discovery
was suspended when the parties agreed to return to FENE. He also asserts that he did not
violate the district court’s scheduling order. We disagree.
As previously discussed, Antzaras’s late disclosure of his expert was a discovery
violation that caused Moshou-Antzaras to incur additional costs. The district court found
that his disclosure was “well after discovery was closed .” In addition, the district court
concluded that Antzaras withheld relevant information and documents, including the
parties’ gift registries, which he disclosed for the first time at trial. The district court “found

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this surprise ‘discovery’ extremely troubling” and concluded that Antzaras “lacked
credibility as he tried to explain how he got the parties’ gift registries at the eleventh hour
if he wasn’t deliberately disregarding the Court’s discovery order.” Because we defer to
the district court’s credibility determinations, we conclude the district court did not abuse
its discretion in determining that Antzaras unnecessarily delayed the proceedings . See
Kremer, 827 N.W.2d at 463.
Antzaras contends that he permitted Moshou -Antzaras to enter the homestead
multiple times following their separation and voluntarily returned significant personal
property to her. Specifically, he refers to a number of boxes of property that he claims he
returned in good faith to her attorney. But the district court found that Antzaras “refused
to allow [Moshou -Antzaras] access to the home to do an inventory” of her nonmarital
property. The district court, after personally inspecting the contents of one of the boxes
that Antzaras delivered, stated that Antzaras delivered five boxes of “useless junk,” one of
which contained “a bed skirt covered in feces.” The record well supports the district court’s
determination.
Finally, Antzaras argues that Moshou -Antzaras failed to provide sufficient
supporting documentation for her requested award of attorney fees. “A detailed itemization
of all amounts sought for disbursements or expenses, including the rate for which any
disbursements are charged and the verification that the amounts sought represent the actual
cost to the lawyer ,” Minn. R. Gen. Pract. 119. 02.3, must accompany a part y’s motion
seeking an award of attorney fees in excess of $1,000 . Minn. R. Gen. Pract. 119.01. But
“[a] district court has discretion to strictly enforce or to waive the requirements of rule 119

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when considering a motion for attorney fees.” Kalenburg v. Klein , 847 N.W.2d 34, 4 1
(Minn. App. 2014) (quotation omitted).
Moshou-Antzaras’s attorney prepared an affidavit that included hourly rates, a
description of each item of work performed, and the amount of time spent on each item of
work. Because Antzaras never challenged the sufficiency of this affidavit before the
district court, we do not address his argument on appeal. See Thiele, 425 N.W.2d at 582.
We do note, however, that even if this argument had been properly raised, the district court
has broad discretion to waive the requirement in its entirety. See Kalenburg, 847 N.W.2d
at 41. The district court did not abuse its discretion in awarding Moshou-Antzaras conduct-
based attorney fees.
Affirmed.