Boufaissal v. Boufaissal

251 S.W.3d 160, 2008 Tex. App. LEXIS 2588, 2008 WL 963064

• Court: Court of Appeals of Texas
• Decided: April 9, 2008
• Docket: 05-06-01285-CV
• Status: Published

Opinions

OPINION

Opinion by

Justice WHITTINGTON.

Frances Boufaissal (Wife) appeals from an agreed decree of divorce. In three issues, she contends (i) the trial judge erred in orally rendering judgment in the absence of a completed settlement agreement between the parties; (ii) the evidence was legally and factually insufficient to support the trial judge’s oral rendition of judgment; and (in) the trial judge erred in signing and entering the agreed decree of divorce because its terms varied materially from the parties’ rule 11 settlement agreement. The dispositive issue in this appeal is whether, after approving and consenting to entry of the agreed divorce decree as to both form and substance, Wife may now raise the above issues on appeal. Because she cannot, we affirm.

After a prove-up hearing on June 5, 2006, Wife and Husband tendered an agreed decree of divorce to the trial judge for signature. The agreed decree recites the terms of the parties’ divorce and property division and contains the following language:

FRANCES BOUFAISSAL agrees to the terms of this Decree as evidenced by her signature and that of her attorney below.

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The parties entered into a Rule 11 Agreement on or about April 12, 2006 to settle the terms of their divorce. The Court finds the terms of that Rule 11 Agreement are memorialized in this Agreed Decree of Divorce.

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The Court finds that the pleadings of Petitioner are in due form' and contain all the allegations, information, and prerequisites required by law. The Court, after receiving evidence, finds that it has jurisdiction of this case and of all the parties and that at least sixty days have elapsed since the date the suit was filed. The Court finds that, at the time this suit was filed, Petitioner had been a domiciliary of Texas for the preceding six-month period and a resident of the county in which this suit was filed for the preceding ninety-day period. All persons entitled to citation were properly cited.

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The Court finds that the following is a just and right division of the parties’ marital estate, having due regard for the rights of each party.

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The parties stipulate and the court finds that all assets and debts set forth in this AGREED FINAL DECREE OF DIVORCE represent the total and complete value, as of the date of entry by the court, of the assets and debts acquired during the parties’ marriage.

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APPROVED AND CONSENTED TO AS TO BOTH FORM AND SUBSTANCE:

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FRANCES BOUFAISSAL, Petitioner

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JOSEPH BOUFAISSAL, Respondent

Relying on the evidence presented at the prove-up hearing and the signatures of the parties above, the trial judge signed and entered the agreed divorce decree on June 22, 2006.

A party cannot appeal from a judgment to which she has consented or agreed absent an allegation and proof of fraud, collusion, or misrepresentation. Baw v. Baw, 949 S.W.2d 764, 766 (Tex. App.-Dallas 1997, no writ); Gillum v. Republic Health Corp., 778 S.W.2d 558, 562 (Tex.App.-Dallas 1989, no writ). A party’s consent to the trial judge’s entry of judgment waives any error, except for jurisdictional error, contained in the judgment, and that party has nothing to properly present for appellate review. Gillum, 778 S.W.2d at 562. The rationale of such a rule is that a party will not be allowed to complain on appeal of an action or ruling which she invited or induced. Gillum, 778 S.W.2d at 562.

Wife does not claim in her motion for new trial or on appeal that her approval and consent to the terms of the agreed divorce decree were obtained by fraud, collusion, or misrepresentation.¹ The trial judge signed the decree only after Wife specifically agreed that the terms of the decree memorialized the terms of the rule 11 settlement agreement, all residence and domicile requirements had been met, and the division of the parties’ property was just and right. Because her signature signifies her approval and consent to the terms of the agreed decree as to both form and substance, Wife waived the complaints she now attempts to raise on appeal.

We affirm the agreed decree of divorce entered by the trial judge.

WRIGHT, J., dissenting.

1 . Wife filed a motion for new trial alleging the terms of the agreed decree of divorce vary from the terms of the parties' rule 11 settlement agreement, but she does not raise the trial judge’s denial of her motion for new trial as an issue on appeal. Thus, we do not consider evidence admitted at the motion for new trial hearing or the propriety of the trial judge’s denial of her motion.