Bindas v. Bindas

2019 ND 56, 923 N.W.2d 803
CourtNorth Dakota Supreme Court
DecidedFebruary 25, 2019
Docket20180232
StatusPublished
Cited by8 cases

This text of 2019 ND 56 (Bindas v. Bindas) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering North Dakota Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Bindas v. Bindas, 2019 ND 56, 923 N.W.2d 803 (N.D. 2019).

Opinions

Tufte, Justice.

*804[¶1] Mari Bindas appeals from an order terminating Michael Bindas' spousal support obligation. We conclude the district court erred in terminating Mari Bindas' spousal support under N.D.C.C. § 14-05-24.1(3). We reverse and remand.

I

[¶2] Michael and Mari Bindas were married in 1984. In October 2009, Michael Bindas sued for divorce. The parties filed a marital termination agreement, agreeing to spousal support and distribution of the marital estate. The parties agreed Michael Bindas would pay spousal support to Mari Bindas in the amount of $3,200 per month until she was 62 years old. The parties further agreed the spousal support would continue until the death of either party, Mari Bindas remarried, or the payment on February 1, 2023, had been made. The district court approved and adopted the parties' termination agreement in its order. In November 2009, a judgment was entered incorporating the parties' entire agreement.

[¶3] In January 2018, Michael Bindas moved to modify his spousal support obligation, arguing the spousal support should be terminated under N.D.C.C. § 14-05-24.1(3) because Mari Bindas had been habitually cohabiting with her boyfriend for more than one year. He alleged Mari Bindas and her boyfriend purchased a home together in October 2014 and lived together for two years before purchasing the home. He also filed an affidavit and attached a copy of the warranty deed for Mari Bindas' home in support of his motion.

[¶4] Mari Bindas opposed the motion and requested the court award her attorney's fees and costs under N.D.C.C. § 28-26-01(2). She argued the motion should be denied because Michael Bindas did not provide evidence she is habitually cohabiting in a relationship analogous to marriage, N.D.C.C. § 14-05-24.1(3) does not apply because the parties specifically agreed about the circumstances under which the spousal support obligation would terminate in their marital termination agreement, and the statute does not apply to rehabilitative awards of spousal support. Mari Bindas also filed an affidavit in support of her brief opposing the motion.

[¶5] After a hearing, the district court granted Michael Bindas' motion. The court stated N.D.C.C. § 14-05-24.1 provides spousal support shall be terminated when the receiving spouse has been habitually cohabiting with another individual in a relationship analogous to marriage for one year or more. The court found Mari Bindas has been cohabiting with her boyfriend since 2014, they have been dating since August 2012 and are in an exclusive relationship, they purchased a home together in 2014, and they share the bills related to the house. The court ordered Michael Bindas' spousal support obligation be terminated under N.D.C.C. § 14-05-24.1(3). The court also denied Mari Bindas' request for attorney's fees.

II

[¶6] Mari Bindas argues the district court erred in terminating her spousal support under N.D.C.C. § 14-05-24.1(3). She contends there was not sufficient evidence the statutory requirements for termination had been met.

[¶7] Section 14-05-24.1, N.D.C.C., authorizes the district court to order and modify spousal support and also governs termination of support under certain circumstances, stating:

*8051. Taking into consideration the circumstances of the parties, the court may require one party to pay spousal support to the other party for a limited period of time in accordance with this section. The court may modify its spousal support orders.
2. Unless otherwise agreed to by the parties in writing, spousal support is terminated upon the remarriage of the spouse receiving support. Immediately upon remarriage, the spouse receiving support shall provide notice of the remarriage to the payor spouse at the last known address of the payor spouse.
3. Unless otherwise agreed to by the parties in writing, upon an order of the court based upon a preponderance of the evidence that the spouse receiving support has been habitually cohabiting with another individual in a relationship analogous to a marriage for one year or more, the court shall terminate spousal support.
4. Subsections 2 and 3 do not apply to rehabilitative spousal support.

Section 14-05-24.1, N.D.C.C., was amended in 2015 to add subsections 2, 3, and 4. 2015 N.D. Sess. Laws ch. 124, § 1. The current version of the statute became effective on August 1, 2015. Id. This Court previously held N.D.C.C. § 14-05-24.1(3) applies to divorce judgments entered prior to the effective date of the recent amendments and it applies prospectively to cohabitation occurring after August 1, 2015. Klein v. Klein , 2016 ND 153, ¶ 12, 882 N.W.2d 296.

[¶8] The district court found Mari Bindas has been cohabiting with her boyfriend since 2014, they began dating in August 2012, they are in an exclusive relationship, they purchased a home together in 2014, and they share various bills related to the house. The court found Mari Bindas has been habitually cohabiting with another individual in a relationship analogous to marriage for one year or more. The court found the spousal support is not rehabilitative spousal support and therefore the exception in N.D.C.C. § 14-05-24.1(4) did not apply and the support obligation should be terminated under N.D.C.C. § 14-05-24.1(3). Although Mari Bindas argued the statute did not apply because the parties agreed to the conditions under which the spousal support would terminate and cohabitation was not included as a condition of termination, the district court did not address that argument.

[¶9] On appeal, Mari Bindas argues N.D.C.C. § 14-05-24.1(3) states the court shall terminate spousal support upon cohabitation for more than one year "unless otherwise agreed to by the parties in writing." She contends the legislature included the language "unless otherwise agreed to by the parties" to exclude those situations where the parties reached a private agreement. She claims the statute does not apply in this case because she entered into a marital termination agreement with Michael Bindas, which was incorporated into the judgment, agreeing she should receive spousal support and the agreement specified conditions under which spousal support would terminate.

[¶10] Our standard for construing statutes is well established:

Statutory interpretation is a question of law, which is fully reviewable on appeal. Nelson v. Johnson , 2010 ND 23, ¶ 12, 778 N.W.2d 773. The primary purpose of statutory interpretation is to determine the intention of the legislation. In re Estate of Elken , 2007 ND 107, ¶ 7, 735 N.W.2d 842.

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Bluebook (online)
2019 ND 56, 923 N.W.2d 803, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/bindas-v-bindas-nd-2019.