Juan Ayala v. Blanca Edit Ayala

387 S.W.3d 721, 2011 WL 2930311, 2011 Tex. App. LEXIS 5549
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedJuly 21, 2011
Docket01-09-00785-CV
StatusPublished
Cited by57 cases

This text of 387 S.W.3d 721 (Juan Ayala v. Blanca Edit Ayala) 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
Juan Ayala v. Blanca Edit Ayala, 387 S.W.3d 721, 2011 WL 2930311, 2011 Tex. App. LEXIS 5549 (Tex. Ct. App. 2011).

Opinions

[725]*725OPINION

EVELYN V. KEYES, Justice.

In this restricted appeal, appellant, Juan Ayala (Juan), appeals from a default divorce decree dissolving his marriage to appellee, Blanca Edit Ayala (Blanca). In nine issues, Juan contends that (1) he is entitled to review by restricted appeal and that the evidence is insufficient to support: (2) the imposition of retroactive child support; (3) the assessment of child support; (4) the imposition and assessment of spousal maintenance; (5) the grant of sole managing conservatorship in favor of Blanca; (6) the trial court’s property division; (7) the award of attorney’s fees; (8) the grant of divorce on the grounds of cruelty and adultery; and (9) the amount of monthly child support and spousal support payments. We affirm.

Background

Blanca and Juan were married in 1985. They had four children together during their marriage. Blanca and Juan separated in 1998, and from then on he lived with another woman. Blanca remained in their home, paying all the bills and raising the children with no financial help from Juan. Blanca is diabetic and blind and has had to look to her children for help with the home expenses because she is unable to work.

In March 2008, Blanca filed for a divorce from Juan. By that time, the only minor child left in the home was F.A., age fourteen. Following entry of a series of temporary orders and a hearing in July 2008, the trial court entered an agreed temporary order that awarded sole managing conservatorship of F.A. to Blanca. The agreed order also awarded Blanca temporary support of $150.00 per week, possession of the couple’s home, and visitation as agreed by the parties, and it continued all injunctions listed in the immediately prior temporary restraining order. The trial court also entered an agreed injunction against Juan’s going to the family home.

In October 2008, Juan counter-petitioned for divorce. The case was set for trial in November 2008, then re-set by agreement of the parties for March 27, 2009. Blanca and her attorney appeared for trial on that date. Neither Juan nor his attorney was present. Blanca presented evidence that Juan had notice of the hearing. The trial court held a default hearing, after which it rendered its decision, granting a default judgment to Blanca.

The final decree granted the divorce on grounds of insupportability, cruelty, and adultery; assessed child support at a rate of $650 a month; imposed a judgment against Juan for retroactive child support in the amount of $61,498, to be paid at $150 a month; imposed spousal support for three years at a rate of $780 per month; awarded Blanca her attorney’s fees; divided the parties’ marital estate; and named Blanca as sole managing conservator of F.A., with visitation as mutually agreed upon. The trial court signed the final decree of divorce on April 28, 2009.

Four months later, after not filing any post-judgment motions or notice of appeal, Juan filed a notice of restricted appeal from this judgment.

Restricted Appeal

In his first issue, Juan contends that he is entitled to a restricted appeal from the trial court’s final decree of divorce. Juan’s second through eighth issues challenge the sufficiency of the evidence to support the judgment. Juan claims that the record reveals on its face that there is insufficient evidence to support several aspects of the trial court’s judgment and that, therefore, the trial court abused its discretion in making its judgment. His ninth issue con[726]*726tends, in the alternative, that the trial court erred in assessing child support and spousal support payments in excess of 50% of his net monthly income.

We construe Juan’s contentions as one issue with eight sub-parts — whether the trial court abused its discretion in entering the final decree of divorce because the evidence was insufficient to support the judgment.

Standard of Review

A restricted appeal is a procedural device available to a party who did not participate, either in person or through counsel, in a proceeding that resulted in a judgment against the party. Tex.R.App. P. 30. It constitutes a direct attack on a default judgment. Id.; Gen. Elec. Co. v. Falcon Ridge Apartments, Joint Venture, 811 S.W.2d 942, 943 (Tex.1991). A party filing a restricted appeal must demonstrate that (1) he appealed within six months after the judgment was rendered, (2) he was a party to the suit, (3) he did not participate in the actual trial of the case that resulted in the judgment complained of, (4) he did not timely file a post-judgment motion, a request for findings of facts and conclusions of law, or a notice of appeal within the time permitted by Rule 26.1(c) of the Texas Rules of Appellate Procedure, and (5) error appears on the face of the record. Alexander v. Lynda’s Boutique, 134 S.W.3d 845, 848 (Tex.2004); Vazquez v. Vazquez, 292 S.W.3d 80, 83 (Tex.App.-Houston [14th Dist.] 2007, no pet.); Barry v. Barry, 193 S.W.3d 72, 74 (Tex.App.-Houston [1st Dist.] 2006, no pet.). The face of the record includes all papers on filé in the appeal, including the clerk’s record and any reporter’s record. Norman Commc’ns v. Tex. Eastman Co., 955 S.W.2d 269, 270 (Tex.1997); DSC Fin. Corp. v. Moffitt, 815 S.W.2d 551, 551 (Tex. 1991); Vazquez, 292 S.W.3d at 83.

In a suit for divorce, the petition is not taken as confessed if the respondent does not file an answer. Vazquez, 292 S.W.3d at 83 (citing Tex. Fam.Code Ann. § 6.701 (Vernon 1998)). Therefore, if the respondent in a divorce case fails to answer or appear, the petitioner must still present evidence to support the material allegations in the petition. Id. at 83-84. Because a restricted appeal affords an appellant the same scope of review as an ordinary appeal, the appellant may challenge the legal and factual sufficiency of the record. See Norman Commc’ns, 955 S.W.2d at 270; Miles v. Peacock, 229 S.W.3d 384, 386-87 (Tex.App.-Houston [1st Dist.] 2007, no pet.); see also Vazquez, 292 S.W.3d at 83-84 (holding that default judgment granting divorce is subject to eviden-tiary attack on appeal).

Most of the appealable issues in a family law case are evaluated under an abuse of discretion standard. In re A.B.P., 291 S.W.3d 91, 95 (Tex.App.-Dallas 2009, no pet.). A trial court abuses its discretion when it acts in an arbitrary or unreasonable manner or when it acts without reference to any guiding principles. Worford v. Stamper, 801 S.W.2d 108, 109 (Tex.1990); Miles, 229 S.W.3d at 388. Under this standard, legal and factual sufficiency of the evidence are not independent grounds of error, but rather are relevant factors in assessing whether the trial court abused its discretion. Stamper v. Knox, 254 S.W.3d 537, 542 (Tex.App.-Houston [1st Dist.] 2008, no pet.).

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Bluebook (online)
387 S.W.3d 721, 2011 WL 2930311, 2011 Tex. App. LEXIS 5549, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/juan-ayala-v-blanca-edit-ayala-texapp-2011.