Buxton v. Buxton

963 So. 2d 950, 2007 WL 2481667
CourtDistrict Court of Appeal of Florida
DecidedSeptember 5, 2007
Docket2D06-5358
StatusPublished
Cited by17 cases

This text of 963 So. 2d 950 (Buxton v. Buxton) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court of Appeal of Florida primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Buxton v. Buxton, 963 So. 2d 950, 2007 WL 2481667 (Fla. Ct. App. 2007).

Opinion

963 So.2d 950 (2007)

Kenneth B. BUXTON, Appellant,
v.
Bonnie BUXTON, Appellee.

No. 2D06-5358.

District Court of Appeal of Florida, Second District.

September 5, 2007.

Virginia R. Vetter, Tampa, for Appellant.

*951 M. Katherine Ramers of M. Katherine Ramers, P.A., Dunedin, for Appellee.

STRINGER, Judge.

Kenneth Buxton (the Former Husband) appeals from the trial court's order denying his motion to reduce or terminate his alimony obligation to Bonnie Buxton (the Former Wife), based on her ten-year cohabitation with another man. The trial court denied the Former Husband's motion after concluding that the Former Wife and her long-term companion, Virgil Wasco, are not engaged in a "supportive relationship" as that phrase is used in section 61.14(1)(b), Florida Statutes (2005). Because the trial court's conclusion is not supported by its factual findings, we reverse and remand for further proceedings. In addition, because there is little case law applying section 61.14(1)(b), we address the statute and the issues raised by the parties in some detail.

Section 61.14(1)(b)

Prior to the enactment of section 61.14(1)(b), the courts allowed a payor spouse to seek modification of alimony under section 61.14(a) when the recipient spouse was cohabiting with another. See, e.g., Reno v. Reno, 884 So.2d 462 (Fla. 4th DCA 2004); Bridges v. Bridges, 842 So.2d 983 (Fla. 1st DCA 2003); Springstead v. Springstead, 717 So.2d 203 (Fla. 5th DCA 1998); DePoorter v. DePoorter, 509 So.2d 1141 (Fla. 1st DCA 1987). In those cases, the fact that a recipient spouse was cohabiting with another was not, by itself, sufficient to allow modification of alimony. Reno, 884 So.2d at 465; Springstead, 717 So.2d at 204; DePoorter, 509 So.2d at 1144. Instead, modification required evidence of both cohabitation and a change in circumstances concerning the recipient spouse's needs. Rahn v. Rahn, 768 So.2d 1102, 1104 (Fla. 2d DCA 2000); Reno, 884 So.2d at 465; Springstead, 717 So.2d at 204.

In 2005, the legislature enacted section 61.14(b) to "provide an alternate method to a court to reduce or terminate alimony, without first having to find that there has been a change in financial circumstance, as is the case in current law." Sen. Staff Analysis, C.B./S.B. 152 at 12 (Feb. 25, 2005). As enacted, section 61.14(1)(b)(1) permits the trial court to reduce or terminate alimony if it makes a specific written finding that the recipient spouse has entered into a "supportive relationship" with another person. The statute does not provide an explicit definition of the term "supportive relationship." However, the legislature explained its intent in using this term by stating that it recognized "that relationships do exist that provide economic support equivalent to a marriage and that alimony terminable on remarriage may be reduced or terminated upon the establishment of equivalent equitable circumstances as described in this paragraph." § 61.14(1)(b)(3).

To determine whether a "supportive relationship" exists under the statute, the trial court is required to "elicit the nature and extent of the relationship in question." § 61.14(1)(b)(2). While the trial court is required to consider all evidence relevant to the nature and extent of the relationship, the statute provides a nonexclusive list of eleven factors that the trial court must consider:

a. The extent to which the obligee and the other person have held themselves out as a married couple by engaging in conduct such as using the same last name, using a common mailing address, referring to each other in terms such as "my husband" or "my wife," or otherwise conducting themselves in a manner that evidences a permanent supportive relationship.
*952 b. The period of time that the obligee has resided with the other person in a permanent place of abode.
c. The extent to which the obligee and the other person have pooled their assets or income or otherwise exhibited financial interdependence.
d. The extent to which the obligee or the other person has supported the other, in whole or in part.
e. The extent to which the obligee or the other person has performed valuable services for the other.
f. The extent to which the obligee or the other person has performed valuable services for the other's company or employer.
g. Whether the obligee and the other person have worked together to create or enhance anything of value.
h. Whether the obligee and the other person have jointly contributed to the purchase of any real or personal property.
i. Evidence in support of a claim that the obligee and the other person have an express agreement regarding property sharing or support.
j. Evidence in support of a claim that the obligee and the other person have an implied agreement regarding property sharing or support.
k. Whether the obligee and the other person have provided support to the children of one another, regardless of any legal duty to do so.

Id. In addition, section 61.14(1)(b)(3) permits the trial court to consider whether the relationship is a conjugal one. If, after considering all the evidence presented, the trial court concludes that a "supportive relationship" exists, it may either reduce or terminate the alimony obligation.

Facts of this Case

The Former Husband and the Former Wife divorced in 1993. At the hearing on the Former Husband's petition, the evidence established that the Former Wife and Wasco have been living together for the past ten years. They live in a house that the Former Wife owned before the start of their relationship. Wasco owns a condominium, which he owned before the start of the relationship, but it is leased to tenants. Wasco's driver's license and voter registration card both list the shared residence as his permanent address. The Former Wife and Wasco share a bed as well as a residence. They also share the household chores, maintenance, and upkeep.

Both Wasco and the Former Wife testified that Wasco pays "rent" of $575 per month to the Former Wife; however, they agreed that the amount of the rent actually paid fluctuates each month. For example, the Former Wife pays Wasco to mow her lawn by deducting $45 from the "rent" each time he mows. She testified that if she had to hire someone to mow the yard, it would cost approximately $65 each time. In addition, the Former Wife testified that she would sometimes have Wasco purchase items for her at Sam's Club, and she would deduct the amount of those purchases from the "rent." Wasco pays a portion of the cable bill. Other than that one bill, the Former Wife pays all of the household expenses, including the mortgage, property taxes, and utilities, from her funds, which include the "rent" she receives from Wasco. While the parties used the term "rent" for these payments at the evidentiary hearing, in the ten years that Wasco has paid "rent" to the Former Wife, she never claimed these payments as rental income for tax purposes until after the Former Husband filed this petition.

*953 The Former Wife and Wasco both testified that they do not have any joint bank accounts. However, when they go grocery shopping together, they each usually pay half of the bill.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
963 So. 2d 950, 2007 WL 2481667, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/buxton-v-buxton-fladistctapp-2007.