Brickus v. Dent

5 A.3d 1281, 2010 Pa. Super. 183, 2010 Pa. Super. LEXIS 3248, 2010 WL 3819705
CourtSuperior Court of Pennsylvania
DecidedOctober 1, 2010
Docket1648 EDA 2009
StatusPublished
Cited by26 cases

This text of 5 A.3d 1281 (Brickus v. Dent) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Superior Court of Pennsylvania primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Brickus v. Dent, 5 A.3d 1281, 2010 Pa. Super. 183, 2010 Pa. Super. LEXIS 3248, 2010 WL 3819705 (Pa. Ct. App. 2010).

Opinions

OPINION BY

GANTMAN, J.:

Appellant, Latoya L. Brickus (“Mother”), appeals from the order entered in the Chester County Court of Common Pleas, which declined to implement the hearing officer’s report and recommendation to increase the support obligation of Appellee, Raymond T. Dent (“Father”), in accordance with amended state support guidelines. For the following reasons, we vacate and remand for further proceedings.

The relevant facts and procedural history of this case are as follows. Mother and Father had a child born July 1, 1999.1 Mother filed a complaint for child support on August 9, 1999. On August 30, 2000, the court issued an order setting Father’s support obligation at $345.00 per month plus 63% of unreimbursed medical expenses, and a portion of child care expenses based on Father’s and Mother’s respective net incomes. On April 5, 2001, Mother filed a petition to increase Father’s child support obligation, alleging Father’s support obligation should have been higher under the existing support guidelines. By order dated May 10, 2001, and filed on May 16, 2001, the court issued a modified support order increasing Father’s child support obligation to $370.00 per month plus 60% of unreimbursed medical expenses, and a portion of child care expenses. On October 5, 2007, Father filed a petition to decrease his support obligation due to his impending retirement from the military. On December 7, 2007, Father withdrew his petition and both parties agreed to leave the 2001 modified support order in effect.

On August 25, 2008, Father filed the instant petition to decrease his support obligation based on changed circumstances, namely, a reduction in income due to job loss. Father alleged his only source of income was a military pension of $942.00 per month. Mother did not file a cross-petition for relief. On October 27, 2008, the parties executed an interim support agreement that temporarily reduced Father’s child support obligation to $200.00 per month, with $20.00 per month towards arrears, and 50% of unreimbursed medical expenses. Significantly, the parties intended the interim support order to remain in effect only until the court heard argument on Father’s petition and issued a final support order.

On January 27, 2009, a hearing officer heard Father’s petition to decrease child support. Thereafter, the hearing officer found Father’s evidence insufficient to prove he had tried to mitigate his job loss with diligent attempts to obtain new employment. As a result, the hearing officer used Father’s monthly military pension [1283]*1283and his earning capacity to calculate his net monthly income in accordance with amended state support guidelines.2 On February 2, 2009, the hearing officer filed a report and recommendation that Father pay child support in the amount of $511.00 per month, plus 47.36% of unreimbursed medical expenses.

On February 2, 2009, Father filed exceptions to the hearing officer’s report and recommendation, claiming the hearing officer should have considered only his military pension, and not his earning capacity, in the computation of his support obligation. Father also alleged he made tireless, albeit unsuccessful, efforts to find employment. On March 24, 2009, the trial court held a hearing on Father’s exceptions.

On May 11, 2009, the trial court granted Father’s exceptions in part and denied them in part. Specifically, the court found the hearing officer erred in increasing Father’s child support obligation, where Mother did not file a cross-petition for an increase in child support. The court, however, denied Father’s exceptions to the extent he asserted the hearing officer erred in refusing to decrease Father’s child support obligation, because Father did not present sufficient evidence to establish mitigation of his unemployment. As a result, the trial court reinstated the May 2001 modified support order retroactive to August 25, 2008, the date Father filed his petition to decrease, except for the period when the interim support agreement was in effect.

On June 3, 2009, Mother timely filed a notice of appeal. That same day, the court ordered Mother to file a concise statement of matters complained of on appeal pursuant to Pa.R.A.P. 1925(b). Mother timely filed her Rule 1925(b) statement on June 22, 2009.

Mother raises the following issues for our review:

DID THE TRIAL COURT ERR BY OVERRULING THE REPORT AND RECOMMENDATION OF THE HEARING OFFICER WHO, BASED ON THE EVIDENCE PRESENTED, MODIFIED AND INCREASED [FATHER’S] CHILD SUPPORT ORDER, UPON HIS PETITION FOR MODIFICATION, IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE PENNSYLVANIA SUPPORT GUIDELINES?
DID THE TRIAL COURT ERR BY FAILING TO APPLY THE CHILD SUPPORT RULES PROMULGATED AT 23 PA.C.S.A. § 4322(a) AND (b), PA.R.C.P.1910.16-3, 1910.16-2(a) AND (d)(4), PA.R.C.P.1910.19(a) AND (c) AND FAILING TO CONSIDER THAT THE APPLICATION OF NEW AND REVISED SUPPORT GUIDELINES ENACTED SINCE THE ENTRY OF THE ORIGINAL SUPPORT ORDER [DATED] MAY 10, 2001, ALONG WITH EVIDENCE OF ADDITIONAL INCOME, AND CHANGES IN THE PARTIES’ INCOMES CONSTITUTED A SUBSTANTIAL AND MATERIAL CHANGE IN CIRCUMSTANCES WARRANTING A REVIEW OF THE EXISTING SUPPORT ORDER?
DID THE TRIAL COURT ERR BY DETERMINING THAT ONLY THE ISSUES RAISED IN [FATHER’S] PETITION FOR MODIFICATION WERE BEFORE THE HEARING OF[1284]*1284FICER AND THAT AT A DE NOVO REVIEW THE HEARING OFFICER DOES NOT HAVE THE AUTHORITY TO MODIFY THE EXISTING SUPPORT ORDER IN ANY APPROPRIATE MANNER BASED UPON THE EVIDENCE PRESENTED PURSUANT TO PA.R.C.P.1910.11(i), PA.R.C.P. 1910.12 ET AL., AND PA.R.C.P. 1910.19(a) AND (c)?
DID THE TRIAL COURT ERR BY DETERMINING THAT THE HEARING OFFICER ONLY HAD THE AUTHORITY TO DENY [FATHER’S] PETITION FOR MODIFICATION, BECAUSE [MOTHER] DID NOT FILE A CROSS-PETITION, THUS ABROGATING AND NULLIFYING [MOTHER’S] RIGHT TO PROCEED WITH A HEARING AND RECEIVE A THOROUGH REVIEW OF THE EVIDENCE PRESENTED AND HAVE THE SUPPORT GUIDELINES APPLIED TO ESTABLISH AN APPROPRIATE SUPPORT ORDER PURSUANT TO PA.R.C.P.1910.16-2(d)(4), 1910.16-3, 1910.19(a) AND (c) AND 23 PA.C.S.A. § 4322(a) AND (b)?
DID THE TRIAL COURT ERR BY DETERMINING THAT [FATHER] WAS DENIED DUE PROCESS AND FAILED TO RECEIVE SUFFICIENT NOTICE THAT HIS SUPPORT OBLIGATION MAY BE MODIFIED BY THE HEARING OFFICER IN ANY APPROPRIATE MANNER BASED UPON THE EVIDENCE PRESENTED BEFORE THE COURT?
DID THE TRIAL COURT ERR BY FAILING TO ENTER A GUIDELINE SUPPORT ORDER RETROACTIVE TO THE FILING DATE OF [FATHER’S] PETITION FOR MODIFICATION AND ERRONEOUSLY UPHELD AN AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE PARTIES WHICH TEMPORARILY REDUCED [FATHER’S] SUPPORT OBLIGATION AND REMITTED HIS ARREARAGES WHICH WAS MANIFESTLY UNFAIR AND AGAINST THE BEST INTEREST OF THE CHILD[?]
DID THE TRIAL COURT ERR BY FRUSTRATING THE EFFORTS OF OBTAINING JUDICIAL ECONOMY AND EXPEDIENT DISPOSITION OF SUPPORT ACTIONS BY REQUIRING OPPOSING PARTIES TO EXPEND TIME AND MONEY TO FILE PROPHYLACTIC CROSS PETITIONS TO PRESERVE THEIR RIGHTS TO PRESENT EVIDENCE AND ADVOCATE THEIR POSITION CONTRA TO THE PARTY INITIATING THE SUPPORT MODIFICATION PROCEEDING?

(Mother’s Brief at 10-11).

Our standard of review over child support orders is:

When evaluating a support order, this Court may only reverse the trial court’s determination where the order cannot be sustained on any valid ground.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
5 A.3d 1281, 2010 Pa. Super. 183, 2010 Pa. Super. LEXIS 3248, 2010 WL 3819705, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/brickus-v-dent-pasuperct-2010.