Kimberly L. Ball v. Michael R. Ball

CourtMissouri Court of Appeals
DecidedNovember 23, 2021
DocketED109532
StatusPublished

This text of Kimberly L. Ball v. Michael R. Ball (Kimberly L. Ball v. Michael R. Ball) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Missouri Court of Appeals primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Kimberly L. Ball v. Michael R. Ball, (Mo. Ct. App. 2021).

Opinion

In the Missouri Court of Appeals Eastern District DIVISION THREE

KIMBERLY L. BALL, ) No. ED109532 ) Appellant, ) Appeal from the Circuit Court of ) St. Charles County vs. ) ) Honorable John P. Banas MICHAEL R. BALL, ) ) Respondent. ) Filed: November 23, 2021

Introduction

Kimberly Guinn (“Mother”) appeals the trial court’s judgment modifying an Illinois

court’s child custody judgment and giving Michael Ball (“Father”) sole physical custody of their

daughter, MB. Mother raises eight Points on appeal. In Point I, Mother challenges the trial

court’s “jurisdiction” to modify an Illinois court’s dissolution judgment. In Point II, Mother

argues the trial court improperly entered a temporary custody order without a hearing and

delegated its judicial authority to enter a custody order to a guardian ad litem (“GAL”). In Points

III-IV, Mother argues the trial court erred by awarding the parties joint legal custody, giving

Father final decision-making authority, and awarding Father sole physical custody of MB. In

Point V, Mother argues the trial court uncritically “rubber stamped” Father’s proposed findings

of fact and conclusions of law. In Point VI, Mother argues the trial court lacked jurisdiction to

amend the Illinois judgment’s award of a tax credit to her. In Point VII, Mother argues the trial court erred by dismissing her motion for new trial as untimely. In Point VIII, Mother argues the

trial court lacked jurisdiction to amend the child support order because it was not registered for

modification.

We affirm.

Factual and Procedural Background

The parties’ relationship began in 2008. They had one child together in March of 2010,

MB. The parties married in July of 2010 and divorced in Illinois on June 28, 2017. They lived

in both Missouri and Illinois at different points during the marriage and were twice separated

pending divorce in 2012-2013 and 2015-2017.

The 2017 Illinois dissolution judgment provided Mother would receive sole physical and

legal custody of MB and Father would receive visitation on the Illinois equivalent of a

Siegenthaler schedule.1 In July 2019, Father attempted to register the dissolution judgment in

Missouri and sought to modify it under the Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement

Act (“UCCJEA”), RSMo § 452.810.12 and Missouri Supreme Court Rule 74.14.3

Section 452.810.1 permits registration of another state’s child custody determination in

Missouri courts. The registration may include a simultaneous request for enforcement. As

relevant here, to register a foreign judgment, section 452.810.1(2) provides the registering party

must send (1) two copies, including one certified copy, of the determination sought to be

registered and (2) a statement under penalty of perjury that to the best of the knowledge and

belief of the person seeking registration the order has not been modified.

1 Siegenthaler visitation schedules generally provide the non-custodial parent with visitation on designated weekends, weekdays, holidays, and longer periods during the summer. See White v. White, 616 S.W.3d 373, 384 (Mo. App. E.D. 2020). 2 All statutory citations are to RSMo (2019), unless otherwise indicated. 3 All Rule citations are to the Missouri Supreme Court Rules (2019), unless otherwise indicated.

2 Rule 74.14 controls registration of foreign judgments in Missouri courts generally and

contains filing rules pertaining to properly authenticating the foreign judgment seeking

registration. Rule 74.14(b) provides:

A copy of any foreign judgment authenticated in accordance with the act of

Congress or the statutes of this state may be filed in the office of the clerk of any

circuit court of this state. The clerk shall treat the foreign judgment in the same

manner as a judgment of the circuit court of this state. A judgment so filed has the

same effect and is subject to the same procedures, defenses, and proceedings for

reopening, vacating, or staying as a judgment of a circuit court of this state and

may be enforced or satisfied in like manner.

The trial court conducted a hearing on the motion to modify on October 15-16, 2020.

Whether Father properly registered the judgment in Missouri was not an issue raised. On

December 16, 2020, the trial court raised the issue of its jurisdiction over the Illinois judgment

sua sponte. The trial court’s jurisdiction concerns did not include the authentication of the

Illinois judgment; they were limited to the court’s ability to modify a foreign judgment without

first consulting the issuing state’s court.4 On January 7, 2021, the trial court held a jurisdictional

conference with the Illinois court under Mo. Rev. Stat. 452.730.5 Both parties participated in the

conference and submitted written arguments to the Illinois court about which court should have

jurisdiction over the modification motion.

4 The trial court determined it was required to conduct a “jurisdictional hearing” with the Illinois court under section 452.750 before modifying the parties’ Illinois judgment. 5 Section 452.730 provides Missouri courts may communicate with courts of other states regarding jurisdictional issues in cases involving dissolution of marriage, custody, and support under sections 452.700-452.930.

3 On January 29, 2021, the Illinois court entered a written judgment finding it had no

continuing interest in retaining jurisdiction over the parties. Specifically, the Illinois court

found:

Based on the evidence, neither the child, the child’s parents, nor any person acting

as a parent have a significant connection with this State and that substantial

evidence is no longer available in this State concerning the child’s care,

protection, training, and personal relationships. The Court, therefore, no longer

has exclusive, continuing jurisdiction over the issue of child custody [. . . .]

Based upon the evidence, even if the Court were to find that it has exclusive,

continuing jurisdiction, Illinois is an inconvenient forum for the parties to litigate

the issue of modification of this Court’s judgment and the Court would decline to

exercise jurisdiction.

The Illinois court further emphasized Illinois was an inappropriate forum because (1) MB

lived in Missouri “the majority of the time since entry of the Illinois judgment;” (2) the distance

between the parties did not create an undue burden; (3) the parties “essentially agreed to the

jurisdiction of the Missouri court by litigating the entire case [in Missouri];” and (4) the Missouri

court was in a better position to decide the case and consider witness credibility because the

Missouri court heard the evidence and the Illinois court did not.

The Missouri court accepted the Illinois court’s findings and retained jurisdiction. On

February 8, 2021, the Missouri court entered its findings of fact and conclusions of law,

modifying the Illinois judgment (1) granting joint legal custody to both parents; (2) granting sole

physical custody to Father; (3) eliminating Father’s child support obligations; and (4)

purportedly transferring child tax benefits to Father.

4 The Illinois and Missouri trial courts are to be commended for their efforts to address

their continuing jurisdiction over this factually complicated matter.

This appeal follows. Additional factual and procedural history will be provided as

necessary to address Mother’s claims.

Standard of Review

A. Jurisdiction

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

J.C.W. Ex Rel. Webb v. Wyciskalla
275 S.W.3d 249 (Supreme Court of Missouri, 2009)
State v. Griffin
848 S.W.2d 464 (Supreme Court of Missouri, 1993)
Murphy v. Carron
536 S.W.2d 30 (Supreme Court of Missouri, 1976)
Hightower v. Myers
304 S.W.3d 727 (Supreme Court of Missouri, 2010)
In Re Marriage of Hendrix
183 S.W.3d 582 (Supreme Court of Missouri, 2006)
McMinn v. McMinn
884 S.W.2d 277 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 1994)
Lisa M. Rallo v. Pete S. Rallo
477 S.W.3d 29 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 2015)
Kelly J. Blanchette v. Steven M. Blanchette
476 S.W.3d 273 (Supreme Court of Missouri, 2015)
Anthony Arcese v. Daniel Schmitt & Company
504 S.W.3d 772 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 2016)
Donna Lynn (Tate) Librach v. Stanley L. Librach
575 S.W.3d 300 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 2019)
Christopher Gray v. Missouri Department of Corrections
577 S.W.3d 866 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 2019)
Thorp v. Thorp
390 S.W.3d 871 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 2013)
Mehler v. Martin
440 S.W.3d 529 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 2014)
Scott v. King
510 S.W.3d 887 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 2017)
Fouts v. Regency N. Acquisition, LLC
569 S.W.3d 463 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 2018)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
Kimberly L. Ball v. Michael R. Ball, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/kimberly-l-ball-v-michael-r-ball-moctapp-2021.