Hosch v. Hosch

684 So. 2d 541, 96 La.App. 4 Cir. 0258, 1996 La. App. LEXIS 2902, 1996 WL 689411
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedNovember 27, 1996
DocketNo. 96-CA-0258
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 684 So. 2d 541 (Hosch v. Hosch) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Louisiana Court of Appeal primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Hosch v. Hosch, 684 So. 2d 541, 96 La.App. 4 Cir. 0258, 1996 La. App. LEXIS 2902, 1996 WL 689411 (La. Ct. App. 1996).

Opinion

liARMSTRONG, Judge.

This is an appeal from two judgments, one awarding child support and one denying a motion to reduce that award. The plaintiff in this domestic relations case, Theaddeus Hosch, appeals a child support award of $627.48 per month in favor of the defendant, Dawn Hosch, as well as the denial, seven days later, of his motion to reduce that same award. We affirm.

Mr. Hosch and Mrs. Hosch were married in June 1990. One daughter, Donna Marie Hosch, was born of the marriage. The parties separated in October ‘ 1994 and were divorced in September 1995. On June 30, 1995 the trial court rendered judgment on the issues of custody and child support. The court ordered that Mr. Hosch pay monthly child support in the amount of $627.48, to be paid in two equal installments each month. On July 6, 1995, Mr. Hosch filed a rule to decrease child support on the basis that his income had been greatly reduced. The trial court summarily denied the motion on July 7, 1995. Mr. Hosch appeals raising nine assignments of error.

^SUFFICIENCY OF INCOME EVIDENCE

Mr. Hosch first argues that the trial court erred in rendering a judgment on child support because no “verified income statement” or other appropriate documentation was furnished by the defendant, as he claims is required by La. R.S. 9:315.2, from which such a determination could be made. La. R.S. 9:315.2 states in part:

A. Each party shall provide to the court a verified income statement showing gross income and adjusted gross income, together with documentation of current and past earnings. Suitable documentation of current earnings shall include but not be limited to pay stubs, employer statements, or receipts and expenses if self-employed. The documentation shall include a copy of the party’s most recent federal tax return. A copy of the statement and documentation shall be provided to the other party.

The record contains no verified income statements by either party. On the other hand, the record contains the federal income tax returns of Mr. Hosch to show his income for those two years (these were joint returns filed by Mr. Hosch and Mrs. Hosch as a married couple), plus earnings records from Mr. Hosch’s employer for the year 1994, and an employer’s statement from Mrs. Hosch’s employer showing her hourly wage rate and Mrs. Hosch’s testimony that she worked thirty hours a week. Courts have found that the lack of verified income statements and other documentation indicates that the trial court could not have properly applied the guidelines of La. R.S. 9:315 et seq. to make an appropriate determination as to child support. Broussard v. Broussard, 617 So.2d 1187 (La.App. 4th Cir.1993)(no verified worksheets, no check stubs or employer statements, federal income tax return for one party only); Crefasi v. Crefasi 628 So.2d 1274 (La.App. 3rd Cir.1993)(no verified income statements, no documentation of current and past earnings, no federal income tax returns); Bercegeay v. Bercegeay, 617 So.2d 133 (La.App. 5th Cir.l993)(no verified income statement, no documentation as to one party’s income, testimony concerning income); Phillips v. Phillips, 595 So.2d 732 (La.App. 5th Cir.1992)(no verified income statements, inadequate documentation of current and past wages, no copies of most recent federal income tax returns).

In the instant case, the personnel manager of the supermarket chain where Mrs. Hosch worked wrote a letter dated February 3, 1995, stating that Mrs. Hosch was employed as a bakery clerk at a rate of $4.75 per hour and that she would be eligible for family medical insurance for a $40.00 weekly premium after ninety days of employment working thirty hours per week. Mrs. Hosch testified that she worked thirty hours a week. The trial court made a finding that Mrs. Hosch’s gross monthly income was $617.50, a figure presumably derived by multiplying the $4.75 hourly wage times 30 hours times 52 weeks per year, and dividing by 12 months.

Mrs. Hosch had just begun working at the time of trial. She apparently had not worked during the marriage — her occupation was listed as a housewife on the couple’s 1994 federal income tax return — and thus there [543]*543would have been no other evidence of recent earnings. The employer statement submitted by Mrs. Hosch is an expressly acceptable means of documenting one’s income under La. R.S. 9:315.2. While Mrs. Hosch failed to file a verified income statement, so did Mr. Hosch. Even considering the absence of a verified income statement, we believe the trial court had sufficient documentation before it to make a determination as to the defendant’s gross monthly earnings and to render a child support award in accordance with the guidelines.

\¿BUSINESS EXPENSES

Mr. Hosch next argues that the trial court erred by not subtracting the ordinary and necessary expenses required to produce his income before determining his gross monthly income. La. R.S. 9:315(4) defines gross income in part as:

(e) Gross receipts minus ordinary and necessary expenses required to produce income, for purposes of income from self-employment, ... “Ordinary and necessary expenses” shall not include ... business expenses determined by the court to be inappropriate for determining gross income for purposes of calculating child support.

Mb’. Hosch is an owner-operator of a tractor-trailer truck and hauls cargo containers for Dupuy Storage & Forwarding Corporation. He usually is paid per container hauled. Dupuy deducts 10% from his gross pay for cargo and liability insurance and 10% of one-third of his gross for worker’s compensation insurance. For instance, one week Mr. Hosch hauled forty containers, at $35.00 per container, for a gross of $1,400.00, less $140.00 for cargo and liability insurance and $46.67 for worker’s compensation insurance, for a net of $1,213.33. In addition, Mr. Hosch pays for his gas, repairs and parts for the truck.

Mr. Hosch’s 1993 federal income tax return listed his “total income” that year as $6,232.49, adjusted gross, the same. His “gross income” as listed on his schedule C was $28,799.33. In connection with this litigation Mr. Hosch furnished Mrs. Hoseh’s counsel with an undated purported copy of his 1994 federal income tax return listing his total income as $31,365.00, adjusted gross, $29,233.00. His gross income listed on his schedule C for 1994 was $56,905.00. At trial, Mr. Hosch introduced in evidence what he claimed was his correct 1994 federal income tax return, the original of which had been filed with the Internal | gRevenue Service. It listed a total income of $20,318.00, and an adjusted gross of $18,966.00. The schedule C again listed his gross income as $56,-905.00. Mr. Hosch explained that he had a quick return prepared in preparation for this litigation and he had failed to give his tax preparer complete records regarding his deductions. The “correct” return listed an additional $11,047.00 in business expenses, consisting primarily of an additional $9,172.00 for insurance, up from the $491.00 previously listed, for a total of $9,663.00.

The trial court questioned Mr. Hosch concerning some of his expenses listed on his federal income tax return.. Mr. Hosch could not explain many of the expenses. He said he just gave his records to his tax preparer and she prepared his tax return. As previously mentioned, his “correct” return listed $9,663.00 for non-health insurance. A 1994 Form 1099 from Dupuy lists his non-employee compensation as $56,905.00, the same as his gross income from his tax return.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
684 So. 2d 541, 96 La.App. 4 Cir. 0258, 1996 La. App. LEXIS 2902, 1996 WL 689411, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/hosch-v-hosch-lactapp-1996.