In Re the Marriage of Harrington

199 N.W.2d 351, 1972 Iowa Sup. LEXIS 851
CourtSupreme Court of Iowa
DecidedJune 29, 1972
Docket54850
StatusPublished
Cited by8 cases

This text of 199 N.W.2d 351 (In Re the Marriage of Harrington) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Iowa primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
In Re the Marriage of Harrington, 199 N.W.2d 351, 1972 Iowa Sup. LEXIS 851 (iowa 1972).

Opinions

MASON, Justice.

This is an appeal by Esther Pauline Harrington, respondent-wife, in dissolution of marriage proceedings challenging that portion of the decree relating to the award of property settlement made for her as insufficient. Petitioner, Earl Franklin Harrington, instituted the present action under chapter 1266 Acts of the Second Session of the Sixty-third General Assembly which repealed chapter 598, The Code, 1966, and enacted a new dissolution of marriage procedure effective July 1, 1970, which now appears as chapter 598, The Code, 1971.

Respondent and petitioner were married in June 1960. Both had been previously married and divorced. Before her marriage to petitioner, respondent was living with two of her three children, Candace age 6 and Eldon age 14, in her home in Polk City. Her third child was married and lived elsewhere. Respondent was employed by a local bank as a bookkeeper at a salary of $60 per week and was receiving $25 per week from her former husband as child support. The child support payments were discontinued in July 1960.

Mr. Harrington owned and lived on a 120-acre farm southwest of Boone. He farmed his own land, rented additional land, custom farmed other land and had an extensive livestock operation.

At the time of the marriage there was a five-year-old modern house, a machine shed, barn and crib on petitioner’s farm. He had a full line of machinery, some livestock and an estimated net worth of $45,000. Other than a $7000 mortgage on the farm petitioner had no other debts.

After the marriage respondent and her two children moved to petitioner’s farm. She had sold her home in Polk City receiving approximately $1300 after expenses. A part of this money was placed in a joint savings account with her husband in a Boone bank. She brought some furniture to the farm and had sold other pieces for approximately $300. This money was later used for farm expenses.

[353]*353Before respondent married Harrington neither she nor Eldon had had any farm-work experience. However, under Mr. Harrington’s tutoring both became good “hands.” In a short time respondent was capably operating a tractor in the field while helping with fall plowing, pulling the hay baler, hauling beans from the field to. the bin, ear corn from the field to the crib and pulling a disk to prepare the ground. She also helped sort hogs. In fact, it appears from the record she participated in every farm operation both on the home farm and the rented land except combining. Of course, this was in addition to keeping house, looking after Candace, preparing meals and washing two to three loads of clothes every night during harvest season. In the winter months Harrington did most of the chores and his wife took it easy.

Harrington described his wife as a “good worker.” Mrs. Harrington pictures herself as a pretty healthy woman in 1960, big and strong physically. She said she continued her farm activities until 1968 or 1969 when she developed some physical problems including muscular spasms. This affected her “just like working all day and all night because she didn’t rest at night, and had this muscular reaction all night.” She also had some other surgical procedures. Because of utter fatigue she rested all winter but did help with some of the spring work in 1969.

Eldon worked right along with Harrington through the summer months until after graduation from high school. While he was going to school his school duties interfered somewhat with the amount of help he could give. But when available he did all kinds of field work and helped Harrington in the custom work done for neighbors. Harrington had given Eldon $5.00 a week for spending money and had purchased two or three old cars for him. When he helped neighbors bale hay, Eldon received 2 cents a bale paid directly to him. After graduating from high school, he took one summer at a Chicago technical school at petitioner’s expense. Later he worked away from home and then entered the service for two years. After discharge, he returned to the Harrington farm and again assisted Harrington in petitioner’s farm operation.

Candace continued to live with her mother and the petitioner until her marriage in July 1970. After the child support payments stopped in July 1960, both children were supported through the efforts of petitioner and respondent.

Petition for dissolution was filed July 21, 1970. Trial commenced December 17 and continued through the 18th.

At time of trial petitioner was 55 years of age and respondent, 50. Respondent was not under social security during the marriage. Petitioner estimated his net worth at $90,800 — farm equipment $47,000, the farm $30,000 with $13,000 in a joint account before respondent had withdrawn $10,000 therefrom June 17 and placed it in her own individual account in another bank. Mrs. Harrington kept an itemized account of expenditures made by her from this account commencing June 17 until time of trial. She expended $1333.60 including $500 retainer fee for her attorney.

Candace was no longer living with the parties and Eldon, now age 25, was attending Iowa State University commuting from the farm to Ames.

The foregoing is a fair narration of the factual background upon which the court was asked to make an adjustment of the rights and obligations of the parties upon a judicial termination of their marriage.

I. Respondent does not complain about the court’s termination of the marital relationship. As noted, her attack is directed to the extent of the property settlement made for her, to the fact she was granted no periodic payments of alimony and to the allowance of attorney fees as inadequate.

[354]*354Section 598.21, The Code, 1971, provides :

“Alimony — custody of children — changes. When a dissolution of marriage is decreed, the court may make such order in relation to the children, property, parties, and the maintenance of the parties as shall be justified.

“Subsequent changes may be made by the court in these respects when circumstances render them expedient.”

We set out that portion of the court’s decree determining the property settlement award for respondent:

“2. That there is hereby awarded to the respondent as her sole and separate property the remaining balance of the $10,000 originally owned by the parties which was taken by the respondent in June of 1970.
“3. That the respondent have judgment against the petitioner in the sum of $5,000.00, and that no interest shall accrue on said sum in the event that the same is paid by the petitioner to the Clerk of this Court within thirty days of the filing of this Decree.
“4. That respondent is entitled to possession of that portion of the personal property by way of furniture, fixtures and appliances as hereinbefore set out.
“5. That the above and foregoing allocation of money and judgment shall be in lieu of any provision for support or future maintenance.

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Related

Locke v. Locke
246 N.W.2d 246 (Supreme Court of Iowa, 1976)
In Re the Marriage of Ried
212 N.W.2d 391 (Supreme Court of Iowa, 1973)
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209 N.W.2d 585 (Nebraska Supreme Court, 1973)
In Re the Marriage of Smith
207 N.W.2d 548 (Supreme Court of Iowa, 1973)
In Re the Marriage of Williams
199 N.W.2d 339 (Supreme Court of Iowa, 1972)
In Re the Marriage of Harrington
199 N.W.2d 351 (Supreme Court of Iowa, 1972)

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Bluebook (online)
199 N.W.2d 351, 1972 Iowa Sup. LEXIS 851, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/in-re-the-marriage-of-harrington-iowa-1972.