Badger v. Badger, Unpublished Decision (02-06-2002)
Badger v. Badger, Unpublished Decision (02-06-2002)
Opinion of the Court
The trial court committed error at law to the prejudice of the Defendant-Appellant by failing to grant a set-off against the money owed to the Plaintiff-Appellee.
Mr. Badger asserts that the trial court erred when it failed to grant him a setoff for the amount of money that he asserts Ms. Badger owes him for household expenditures under the antenuptial agreement. Specifically, Mr. Badger asserts that the antenuptial agreement required the couple to share household expenditures during the marriage and that, consequently, Ms. Badger owes him for these expenses from the time she moved out of the marital residence until the time when the divorce was granted. We disagree.
An "antenuptial agreement" is a contract entered into between a man and a woman in contemplation of their future marriage whereby the property rights and economic interests of the parties are determined and set forth. Rowland v. Rowland (1991),
The Ohio Supreme Court has ruled that antenuptial agreements are contracts and that the law of contract will generally apply to their application and interpretation. See Fletcher,
A court should interpret a contract to carry out the intent of the parties as manifested by the language of the contract. Skivolocki v. EastOhio Gas Co. (1974),
The first paragraph of the antenupial agreement expressly provides that the agreement "shall become effective and shall remain in effect irrespective of any change of residence or domicile by either or both of the parties." The sixth paragraph states that "[e]ach of the parties has sufficient property to provide adequately for his or her own care, maintenance and support, and it is contemplated that during marriage they will jointly contribute to provide for their expenses of care, maintenance and support."
In the case at bar, Mr. Badger asserts that the antenuptial agreement was a binding contract between the parties which required the couple to share household expenditures equally during the marriage. He asserts that Ms. Badger no longer contributed to the household expenses once she left the marital residence, and, therefore, she still owes him one-half of all expenses incurred from the time she moved out of the residence until the divorce was granted. Ms. Badger responds that the antenuptial agreement does not require the household expenditures to be divided as of the time she moved out of the couple's residence. She explains that, once she moved out of the residence, each person maintained their own household without contribution from the other spouse. When the trial court interpreted the antenuptial agreement, it held that the plain meaning of the contract language required the parties to jointly contribute to marital expenses. Ms. Badger, the court held, did not owe Mr. Badger any money for household expenses as the couple had followed the dictates of the antenuptial agreement by jointly contributing to the household expenses when they resided together and by each providing for his or her own expenses when living apart in separate households.
While the trial court's interpretation of the contract is reviewed denovo on appeal, this court agrees with the trial court's interpretation of the antenuptial agreement. Together, the plain meaning of the first and sixth paragraphs, is that, regardless of any change of residence, each person in the marriage must contribute to the couple's care, maintenance, and support expenses. There is no requirement that the expenses are shared equally, nor is there a requirement as to the specific amount each person must contribute. Rather, the plain meaning of the agreement is that neither person in the couple is solely responsible for all of the couple's expenses. The parties fulfilled their contractual obligations by each person contributing to the joint household expenses when they resided together and each providing for his or her own household expenses when residing apart.
Judgment accordingly.
The Court finds that there were reasonable grounds for this appeal.
We order that a special mandate issue out of this Court, directing the Court of Common Pleas, County of Medina, State of Ohio, to carry this judgment into execution. A certified copy of this journal entry shall constitute the mandate, pursuant to App.R. 27.
Immediately upon the filing hereof, this document shall constitute the journal entry of judgment, and it shall be file stamped by the Clerk of the Court of Appeals at which time the period for review shall begin to run. App.R. 22(E).
Costs taxed to Appellant.
Exceptions.
BAIRD, J.
SLABY, J. CONCUR
Case-law data current through December 31, 2025. Source: CourtListener bulk data.