In Re the Marriage of Scott

117 S.W.3d 580, 2003 Tex. App. LEXIS 8673, 2003 WL 22300043
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedOctober 7, 2003
Docket07-01-0200-CV
StatusPublished
Cited by33 cases

This text of 117 S.W.3d 580 (In Re the Marriage of Scott) 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 the Marriage of Scott, 117 S.W.3d 580, 2003 Tex. App. LEXIS 8673, 2003 WL 22300043 (Tex. Ct. App. 2003).

Opinion

OPINION

PER CURIAM.

John Thomas Scott (John) appeals from a final divorce decree which ended his 53 year marriage to Alta Mae Scott (Alta) and divided the community property. The four issues before us fall within two general categories. The first involves the legal and factual sufficiency of the evidence underlying the trial court’s decision to grant the divorce and divide the marital estate. The second concerns the ability of the trial court to award title to realty to one who is not a party to the action. We affirm in part and reverse and remand in part.

Issue One — Sufficiency of the Evidence Underlying the Grounds for Divorce

John initially contends that the evidence underlying the trial court’s decision to grant the divorce was both legally and factually insufficient. We disagree.

Alta petitioned for divorce on the grounds that the marriage had become insupportable due to discord or conflict of personalities that destroys the legitimate ends of the marital relationship and prevents any reasonable expectation of reconciliation. See Tex. Fam.Code Ann. § 6.001 (Vernon 1998). Though she did not personally testify at trial, the record nonetheless contains evidence indicating that 1) the Scotts had not slept in the same bedroom for approximately 22 years or lived under the same roof for one and one-half years prior to the final hearing, 2) Alta had changed her lifestyle, 3) Alta had attempted to run John off of the road with a vehicle, 4) John believed Alta was undermining his business, and 5) John wanted to “get rid of this deal.” This is more than ample evidence upon which the trial court could have determined that the marital relationship has been impeded, that discord and conflict of personalities existed, and that the marital relationship had ended without reasonable expectation of reconciliation. See Baxla v. Baxla, 522 S.W.2d 736, 739 (Tex.Civ.App.-Dallas 1975, no writ) (holding evidence that indicated one spouse threatened to kill the other and attempts at reconciliation went for naught evinced that the marital relationship had become insupportable).

As stated in precedent, whether the evidence is sufficient to establish insupporta-bility is left to the discretion of the trial court when the divorce is tried by the court. Id. at 738-39; Cusack v. Cusack, 491 S.W.2d 714, 720 (Tex.Civ.App.-Corpus Christi 1973, writ dism’d w.o.j.). We conclude that the trial court did not abuse its discretion when it held that the marital relationship between the Scotts had become insupportable.

Issue Two — Award to J & J Panhandle Construction, Inc.

Next, John asserts that the trial court erred when it awarded title to several parcels of realty to J & J Panhandle Construction, Inc. (J & J) even though J & J was not a party to the divorce proceeding. We overrule the point.

The property in question (various tracts totaling 40 acres) was transferred by an entity known as Riata to John and Alta. At the time of the transfer, Riata owed J & J *583 for work that J & J had performed for it. And, to satisfy the outstanding debt due J <& J, Riata transferred the realty to Alta and John, the latter being a director and the president of the corporation. Thereafter, John’s son, James, intervened in the divorce proceeding. He did so alleging that he, like his father, was a shareholder of J & J and that John had “engaged in fraudulent or dishonest conduct ... in that he breached his fiduciary duty to the Corporation by using corporate funds to acquire property in his personal name” and that “he has failed to reveal to other directors and officers pertinent facts adverse to corporate interests.... ” Thereafter, he prayed for damages, the removal of John as a director of J & J, interest, costs, attorney’s fees, and “such other relief which the Intervenor may be entitled.” Though John answered the petition, he did so by general denial. No special exceptions were included in the pleading.

James’ petition can be reasonably interpreted as being in the nature of a shareholder’s derivative suit. That is, he, as a shareholder of J & J, initiated suit on behalf of the corporation to recover upon claims of the corporation against its president. And, though the petition may have omitted various pleading requirements mandated by statute, see Edlund v. Bounds, 842 S.W.2d 719, 728-29 (Tex. App.-Dallas 1992, no writ) (holding that the shareholder must allege in his pleading that he made demand upon the corporate officers to prosecute the action and they refused or explain why no such demand was made), no one specially excepted to their absence. Thus, they were waived.

Similarly waived was any complaint about James failing to join J & J as a party to the suit. While the corporation was a necessary or indispensable party to the proceeding, see DeBord v. Circle Y of Yoakum, Inc., 951 S.W.2d 127, 134 (Tex. App.-Corpus Christi 1997), rev’d on other grounds, 967 S.W.2d 352 (Tex.1998) (holding it an indispensable party to a shareholders derivative suit); Providential Inv. Corp. v. Dibrell, 320 S.W.2d 415, 418 (Tex. Civ.App.-Houston 1959, no writ) (holding it a necessary party to such a suit), no one objected to its absence below. Thus, the defect was waived. See Puryear v. Red River Authority, 383 S.W.2d 818, 821 (Tex. Civ.App.-Amarillo 1964, writ refd n.r.e.) (holding that in the absence of a plea of non-joinder of necessary parties, the appellate court was not authorized to reverse the trial court’s judgment because of the lack of a necessary party); Cox v. Johnson, 638 S.W.2d 867, 868 (Tex.1982) (holding that the failure to join an indispensable party generally is not fundamental error because seldom will the absence of an indispensable party deprive the trial court of jurisdiction to adjudicate between the parties already joined).

Finally, a reading of the record discloses ample evidence upon which the factfinder could have reasonably decided that the realty actually belonged to J & J. Again, Riata owed the corporation a debt. Thus, the receivable belonged to J & J, not John, its president and a shareholder. Moreover, the conveyance occurred in satisfaction of the debt owed to J & J, according to John’s own testimony. It is well settled that when one party pays the purchase price of realty (that price being satisfaction of the debt due J & J at bar) but title is placed in the name of another, a purchase money resulting trust will arise in favor of the entity providing the purchase money. Nolana Dev. Ass’n v.

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Bluebook (online)
117 S.W.3d 580, 2003 Tex. App. LEXIS 8673, 2003 WL 22300043, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/in-re-the-marriage-of-scott-texapp-2003.