In Re Marriage of Kennedy

573 N.E.2d 1357, 214 Ill. App. 3d 849, 158 Ill. Dec. 172, 1991 Ill. App. LEXIS 889
CourtAppellate Court of Illinois
DecidedMay 28, 1991
Docket1—89—0605, 1—89—1761 cons.
StatusPublished
Cited by8 cases

This text of 573 N.E.2d 1357 (In Re Marriage of Kennedy) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Appellate Court of Illinois primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
In Re Marriage of Kennedy, 573 N.E.2d 1357, 214 Ill. App. 3d 849, 158 Ill. Dec. 172, 1991 Ill. App. LEXIS 889 (Ill. Ct. App. 1991).

Opinion

JUSTICE CAMPBELL

delivered the opinion of the court:

This is a consolidated appeal brought by petitioner/counterrespondent, William S. Kennedy, from a judgment for dissolution of marriage and from an order entered by the trial court which awarded partial payment of prospective appellate attorney fees to respondent/ counterpetitioner, Mary Jean Kennedy. On appeal, William contends that the trial court abused its discretion when it: (1) awarded 70% of the proceeds from the sale of the marital home to Mary Jean; (2) awarded monthly unallocated maintenance and support to Mary Jean in the amount of 36 2 /s% of William’s monthly net pay or $525, whichever is greater; (3) found that William owed $3,175 in support arrearage; 1 and (4) awarded partial attorney fees to Mary Jean for both the trial and the appeal. For the following reasons, the judgment of the trial court is affirmed.

The record sets forth the following facts. On September 20, 1984, William filed a petition for dissolution of marriage. Mary Jean filed a counterpetition. The couple had been married since April 25, 1959, and had five children. At the time the petitions were filed, three of the children were emancipated and two were minors. During the proceedings, Mary Jean remained living in the marital residence with the minor children.

On December 6, 1985, Mary Jean filed a petition for temporary maintenance and child support. Pursuant to an agreed order, entered January 15, 1986, William agreed to pay Mary Jean $600 per month in temporary maintenance and child support. Mary Jean was to be responsible for making the mortgage payments on the marital home and for paying for routine household expenses. At the time the agreed order was entered, Mary Jean had just started working full time for Palatine High School District 211 as a student supervisor, earning approximately $8,500 per year, and William was working full time as a pari-mutuel clerk at Chicago-area race tracks, earning approximately $45,000 per year.

Subsequently, on June 29, 1987, William filed a petition for modification of the temporary maintenance and support order on the grounds that one of the minor children had reached majority and that he had been released from his employment. William alleged that starting in May 1986, he had worked full time at Illini Hardware and part time at the race track, earning $32,788 that year. In May or June 1987, William was terminated from his position at Illini Hardware. He claimed that he attempted to work full time at the race track, but could not get the assignments he sought. Instead, he worked approximately five shifts per week at the race track. William explained that a shift is a series of 9 to 11 races with a duration of 5 to 5x/2 hours. Prior to any ruling on the petition for modification, William unilaterally decreased his monthly payments to Mary Jean from $600 to $300, effective July 1,1987.

The trial court ruled on William’s petition for modification on February 16, 1988, as part of its oral pronouncement regarding the judgment for dissolution and disposition of marital property. Following hearings on William’s objections to the trial court’s oral pronouncements, the trial court entered the judgment for dissolution of marriage on February 6, 1989, which included, inter alia, the following findings:

“(1) William, age 51, presently worked at Maywood Race Track, earning net monthly wages of approximately $1448.73.
(2) Mary Jean, age 49, presently worked as a student advisor for the 10-month school year, earning approximately $9000 per year gross wages or $651 net monthly wages.
(3) Mary Jean lacks sufficient property to provide for her reasonable needs and is otherwise without sufficient income to provide for her support commensurate with the standard of living established during the long-term marriage.
(4) The parties have stipulated that it is in the minor son’s best interests to be in the full care and custody of Mary Jean.
(5) The Continental Illinois Bank account in the names of Mary Jean, her father, and her brother is the property of Mary Jean’s father and is not subject to division by the court.”

Based on the trial court’s findings, the judgment for dissolution ordered that, inter alia:

“(1) Mary Jean is granted sole care, custody, control and education of the minor son; William is granted reasonable visitation rights.
(2) Commencing September 19, 1988, William is to pay Mary Jean unallocated maintenance and child support in the sum of $525 per month or 36-% percent of his monthly net income, whichever is greater. The award will be reviewable August 1992.
(3) William’s petition for modification of child support is granted retroactive to July 1, 1987 and modified from $600 per month to $525 per month for the period from July 1, 1987 through September 19, 1988. As a result, William owes temporary support arrearages for that period in the sum of $3,375.
(4) Mary Jean is to have possession of the marital home until the minor son reaches majority (August 1992) or completes high school, whichever is later; or until Mary Jean remarries or maintains a conjugal cohabitation with a male person; or until Mary Jean no longer resides in the marital home; at which time the marital home is to be listed for sale.
(5) Mary Jean is to pay the mortgage, real estate taxes, home owner’s insurance, utilities, maintenance and repairs. When the house is sold, Mary Jean is to receive credit for the amount by which she reduced the principal and the remaining proceeds are to be divided 70 percent to Mary Jean and 30 percent to William.
(6) All bank account balances are to be divided equally.
(7) Mary Jean is to receive one-half of William’s pension benefits pursuant to a formula based on duration of marriage and duration of William’s employment.
(8) William is to contribute $2369.50 toward Mary Jean’s trial attorney fees and court costs, and Mary Jean is to pay her attorney the balance of $4,719.”

William’s timely appeal from the judgment for dissolution followed. Thereafter, on April 10, 1989, Mary Jean filed a petition for prospective attorney fees for defense of the appeal. Following a hearing on Mary Jean’s petition, the trial court ordered William to contribute $2,000 toward Mary Jean’s appeal attorney fees, payable to her attorney at $100 per month without prejudice for Mary Jean to file a petition for full appellate attorney fees at the end of the appeal. William’s timely appeal from the appellate fee order followed.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
573 N.E.2d 1357, 214 Ill. App. 3d 849, 158 Ill. Dec. 172, 1991 Ill. App. LEXIS 889, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/in-re-marriage-of-kennedy-illappct-1991.