Price v. Price, 5-07-13 (11-5-2007)
Price v. Price, 5-07-13 (11-5-2007)
Opinion of the Court
{¶ 2} The parties' final decree of divorce was issued by the Hancock County Common Pleas Court on April 27, 1987. In part, the decree ordered that Walter:
Shall pay to the Plaintiff, Isabelle Price, as and for support alimony a sum equal to thirty-three and one-third percent (33-1/3%) of the payor's gross earned income which as used herein shall be that income he receives as an employee or through self-employment unreduced by any deferred compensation and/or retirement pickup less payor's FICA payments. Any asset which the court has ordered divided in the property settlement portion of this order shall not be considered income to the Defendant nor subject to this sustenance alimony order. * * * Said payments shall continue during the life of the payee, Isabelle Price, so long as she does not remarry or cohabit with a person of the opposite sex for more than six (6) months continuously, with the happening of either of the latter subjecting said award to modification by the Court. Payor's obligation to pay payee pursuant to the terms of this paragraph will end and payor will be released from the obligation of payment upon the death of either party; and in no event shall any such payments, or any substitutions therefore, in any form, be made after the payee's death. * * * This Court shall retain continuing jurisdiction of those matters involving the separate maintenance and support of the Plaintiff, Isabelle Price * * * .
(J. Entry, Jun. 4, 1986, at 7-8). *Page 3
{¶ 3} Walter was employed by Marathon Ashland Petroleum from the time of the divorce until January 15, 2005. At that time, Walter's employment was terminated. On February 23, 2005, Walter filed a motion to terminate his spousal support obligation, or in the alternative, to reduce the amount of the obligation. However, on July 11, 2005, he withdrew the alternative request to reduce the spousal support obligation. Isabelle retained counsel and opposed Walter's motion. Isabelle also filed a motion, requesting that the court simply change the source of funds from which Walter was directed to pay support.
{¶ 4} The magistrate held an evidentiary hearing (the transcript of which is not part of the appellate record), and on December 8, 2005, the magistrate filed his decision. The magistrate found that Walter had sought employment, though he had not had any specific job offers; that Walter admitted being in arrears of approximately $13,500; that Walter was not collecting Social Security payments because he hoped to find new employment; that Walter had transferred his accrued benefits from Marathon into a 401(K) account rather than receive monthly benefit payments; and that Walter "currently has no earned income."
{¶ 5} The magistrate also considered Isabelle's "amended motion for temporary and permanent order to withhold spousal support funds from Defendant's 401K at Marathon Ashland Petroleum or other available retirement benefits and for such other order as is necessary to modify the decree of divorce to *Page 4 accomplish same." The magistrate noted that Isabelle's motion asked the court to change the source of the support payment from "earned income" to any other source of income in order to sustain the support payments in the same monthly amounts she had been previously receiving. The magistrate denied Isabelle's motion, noting that the original divorce decree prevented any asset, which had been subject to property division, from being considered in determining spousal support. The magistrate stated that Walter did not have any assets other than those that had been subject to the property distribution. As such, the magistrate determined he could not change the source of funds in order to sustain the support obligation.
{¶ 6} Restricted to the original entry and the evidence of Walter's affairs, the magistrate found that Walter had "no assets from which to pay support, even if it were ordered." Accordingly, the magistrate reduced Walter's support payment to $0 (after finding that 33.33 times 0 equals 0) and retained jurisdiction to modify the amount when Walter began to earn income from employment or self-employment. However, the magistrate preserved the support arrearages and ordered Walter to make monthly payment of no less than $500 thereon.
{¶ 7} Isabelle filed objections to the magistrate's decision, which the trial court overruled. The trial court then adopted the magistrate's decision and filed its final order, granting Walter's motion to terminate spousal support. Isabelle *Page 5 appeals the judgment of the trial court and asserts a sole assignment of error for our review.
The trial court erred as a matter of law in terminating the lifetime award of spousal support when Appellant established an ongoing financial need for spousal support.
{¶ 8} To support her assignment of error, Isabelle raises two arguments. First, she contends that the trial court did not consider her "need" for spousal support when it terminated Walter's obligation. We note that although the trial court "terminated" Walter's spousal support payment, it has in effect, merely modified the amount due to $0. SeeKimble v. Kimble,
{¶ 9} We review a trial court's decision to modify spousal support for an abuse of discretion. Bostick v. Bostick, 3d Dist. No. 1-02-83, 2003-Ohio-5121, at ¶ 8, citing Booth v. Booth (1989),
{¶ 10} Isabelle has stated that the General Assembly now requires courts to consider whether spousal support is "appropriate and necessary" rather than the obligee's "need" in determining spousal support obligations. As stated above, Isabelle has not provided this court with the transcript of the evidentiary hearing. App.R. 9(A). Therefore, we must presume regularity in the trial court's proceedings, or in this case, the magistrate's proceedings. Burrell v. Kassicieh
(1998),
{¶ 11} Isabelle also raised a second argument under her sole assignment of error in which she argued that the trial court should have granted the motion she filed seeking to change the source of funds from which Walter was required to pay support. This argument clearly addresses the trial court's denial of her motion to change the source of funds from which Walter was required to pay support. However, Isabelle's specific assignment of error addresses alleged error only on Walter's motion to terminate support and does not relate to her separate motion. Isabelle has not filed a separate assignment of error to which this argument would apply. As such, we decline to address the second argument. App.R. 12; 16. See also Bd. of Trustees Thorn Township v.Dillow, 5th Dist. No. 2006-CA-7,
{¶ 12} The judgment of the Hancock County Common Pleas Court is affirmed.
Judgment affirmed.
*Page 1SHAW and PRESTON, JJ., concur.
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