This sounds reasonable. Publication 550 charter 4 states under "Indirect transactions" that "You cannot deduct your loss on the sale of stock through your broker if, under a prearranged plan, a related party buys the same stock you had owned. This does not apply to a trade between related parties through an exchange that is purely coincidental and is not prearranged" which seems to support your point. It also states under "Transfers Between Spouses" "Generally, no gain or loss is recognized on a transfer of property from an individual to (or in trust for the benefit of) a spouse or, if incident to a divorce, a former spouse. This nonrecognition rule does not apply in the following situations: The recipient spouse or former spouse is a nonresident alien." I'd say there's enough cover here to go ahead and assign the loss to basis.
