In Re MMS

256 S.W.3d 470, 2008 WL 2190980
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedMay 28, 2008
Docket05-06-01602-CV
StatusPublished

This text of 256 S.W.3d 470 (In Re MMS) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Texas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
In Re MMS, 256 S.W.3d 470, 2008 WL 2190980 (Tex. Ct. App. 2008).

Opinion

256 S.W.3d 470 (2008)

In the Interest of M.M.S. and I.M.S., Children.

No. 05-06-01602-CV.

Court of Appeals of Texas, Dallas.

May 28, 2008.

*473 Victoria G. Warner, Rowlett, for Appellant.

Charles Clyde Philips, Philips & Epperson, L.P., McKinney, for Appellee.

Before Justices MORRIS, WRIGHT, and MOSELEY.

OPINION

Opinion by Justice MORRIS.

In this family law case, the trial court signed an order modifying the parent-child relationship and a judgment for child support arrears. Steven James Stewart contends on appeal that the trial court misapplied the law and abused its discretion in ruling on the issues presented. After reviewing the record, we conclude the trial court abused its discretion in modifying the possession and visitation portions of the divorce decree between Stewart and Shawna Stewart-Bench. We further conclude the trial court did not err or abuse its discretion in awarding Stewart-Bench a judgment for child support arrears. We reverse the modification order and affirm the judgment for arrears.

I.

On February 14, 2005, a final decree of divorce was signed terminating the marriage of Steven James Stewart and Shawna Stewart-Bench. The decree appointed the parties as joint managing conservators of their two minor children, M.M.S. and I.M.S., and ordered standard possession. At the time the decree was signed, Stewart was, and continues to be, a resident of Oklahoma. The decree contained provisions setting forth the terms of possession for parents who live more than 100 miles apart. The terms allowed Stewart to choose whether he wanted to exercise weekend possession of the children on the first, third, and fifth weekends of the month or only one weekend a month. Nothing in the decree precluded Stewart from exercising his periods of possession at his home in Oklahoma.

In January 2006, Stewart filed a motion to modify the parent-child relationship.[1] This motion was followed two months later by a motion for temporary orders. In his motion for temporary orders, Stewart requested, among other things, that he be allowed to place the children on his health insurance. A hearing was held on Stewart's motion for temporary orders, but no order was signed as a result of that hearing.

In April 2006, Stewart-Bench filed an amended motion to enforce payment under the health care provisions of the divorce decree contending Stewart had failed and refused to pay his portion of the children's medical expenses.[2] The trial court held a hearing on both Stewart's motion for modification and Stewart-Bench's motion for enforcement. After hearing the evidence, the trial court granted Stewart-Bench's motion for enforcement and awarded her $1,810.49 for past due medical expenses and $4,639.15 in attorney's fees. The trial court also signed an order modifying the possession and visitation portions of the divorce decree, but not in the manner requested by Stewart. The trial court modified the decree to order that all of Stewart's periods of possession be exercised in Texas and that his weekend possession be limited to one weekend per month. The trial court denied Stewart's request to modify the decree to allow him to place the *474 children on his health insurance. Stewart brings this appeal challenging both the modification order and the judgment for arrears.

II.

In his first issue on appeal, Stewart contends the trial court erred in applying the law and abused its discretion when it denied his request to place the children on his health insurance.[3] In arguing the trial court was required to modify the decree to allow him to place the children on his health insurance, Stewart relies on section 154.182(b) of the Texas Family Code. The language of section 154.182(b) in effect at the time the decree and the modification order were signed stated:

In determining the manner in which health insurance for the child is to be ordered, the court shall render its order in accordance with the following priorities, unless a party shows good cause why a particular order would not be in the best interest of the child:
(1) if health insurance is available for the child through the obligor's employment or membership in a union, trade association, or other organization at reasonable cost to the obligor, the court shall order the obligor to include the child in the obligor's health insurance.

See Act of May 11, 2001, 77th Leg., R.S., ch. 449, 2001 Tex. Gen. Laws 885 (amended 2007) (current version at TEX. FAM.CODE ANN. § 154.182 (Vernon Supp.2007)). The original decree, ordered that Stewart-Bench maintain the children as dependents on the health insurance plan provided by her employer. Stewart later obtained health insurance through his employment at no cost to him. He argues he presented evidence at the hearing that his insurance was superior to that provided by Stewart-Bench. Accordingly, Stewart contends the trial court should have modified the original decree to comply with the requirements of section 154.182.

First, we note that the current language of section 154.182 no longer gives preference to the obligor's health insurance. See TEX. FAM.CODE ANN. § 154.182(b)(1) (Vernon Supp.2007). Under the present statute, preference is given to health insurance available through an employer, union, trade association, or other organization regardless of which parent is the obligor. Id. Furthermore, nothing in either version of the statute requires the trial court to modify an existing order designating that the children be placed on the obligee's health insurance simply because the obligor later obtains health care coverage through his employer. Id. § 154.182; Act of May 11, 2001, 77th Leg., R.S., ch. 449, 2001 Tex. Gen. Laws 885 (amended 2007).

Finally, former section 154.182, like the current version, states that an obligor's health insurance will be given priority "unless a party shows good cause why [that] particular order would not be in the best interest of the child." See Act of May 11, 2001, 77th Leg., R.S., ch. 449, 2001 Tex. Gen. Laws 885 (amended 2007). In this case, Stewart-Bench presented testimony that Stewart's job history was unstable and she was concerned that the children have consistent insurance coverage. By comparison, the children had been continuously receiving medical care through the *475 health insurance provided by Stewart-Bench's employer since the time the divorce became final. After reviewing the record, we conclude the trial court did not err in applying the law or abuse its discretion in refusing to modify the health care coverage provisions of the final divorce decree. We resolve Stewart's first issue against him.

In his second and third issues, Stewart contends the trial court erred and abused its discretion in modifying his visitation and possession rights with the children. Stewart argues the trial court could not alter the visitation and possession order in favor of Stewart-Bench because she had no pleadings on file requesting modifications. Even assuming the modifications conformed to the pleadings, we conclude that the trial court abused its discretion in making the modifications because there is no evidence to support a finding that the modifications made were in the best interest of the children.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
256 S.W.3d 470, 2008 WL 2190980, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/in-re-mms-texapp-2008.