Locke v. Locke

901 S.W.2d 912, 1995 Mo. App. LEXIS 1248, 1995 WL 391979
CourtMissouri Court of Appeals
DecidedJune 30, 1995
Docket66800
StatusPublished
Cited by9 cases

This text of 901 S.W.2d 912 (Locke v. Locke) 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
Locke v. Locke, 901 S.W.2d 912, 1995 Mo. App. LEXIS 1248, 1995 WL 391979 (Mo. Ct. App. 1995).

Opinion

GRIMM, Chief Judge.

In this domestic relations matter, the trial court granted husband’s motion to modify seeking a reduction of child support. In addition, the court awarded him restitution for payments he made on a loan assigned to wife in the divorce.

Husband’s mother was allowed to intervene. The trial court also awarded her restitution for payments she made on the loan. Moreover, the court imposed a trust in her favor on wife’s residence.

Wife appeals. We modify by deleting the trust which the court imposed, and affirm.

*914 I. Background

We state the facts in a light most favorable to the judgment and review under the standard enunciated in Murphy v. Carrón, 536 S.W.2d 30, 32 (Mo.banc 1976). Husband and Wife were married on September 5, 1971. In 1981, they purchased a home on a contract for deed. The property was used as their marital residence.

Husband and wife became delinquent on their payments. Facing loss of the property, husband went to his mother for help. She agreed to help by putting up a $20,000 certificate of deposit as collateral for a loan.

On September 19, 1986, husband and his mother signed a note to Commerce Bank for $13,650.22. That sum was deposited in husband’s mother’s account. She then wrote a check for that amount and paid off the balance due on husband and wife’s residence.

Wife did not sign the bank note. Nor did she or husband give husband’s mother a security interest in the residence. The bank note required $150 monthly payments. Husband and wife made those payments for five years.

On November 4, 1991, the parties’ marriage was dissolved. They filed a stipulation and agreement which the trial court approved. Paragraph 6 of the agreement states:

6. It is the view of the parties that there is approximately $18,000.00 in equity in the residence property owned by the parties. [Husband] does hereby agree to assign, transfer and quit claim to [wife] all his right, title and interest in said residence property to be [wife’s] separate property, subject to the indebtedness thereon, and [wife] agrees to pay said indebtedness. In exchange [wife] does release all interest she may have in [husband’s] Retirement Plan at American Cyanamid Company.

In the agreement, husband and wife stipulated that wife should have custody of their two children. Husband agreed to pay child support of $500.00 per month.

Following their divorce, wife made the $150 monthly payments on the loan until August, 1992. At that time, husband contacted wife because mother was wanting to get her CD released from the debt. Wife attempted to borrow the money elsewhere, but was unable to do so. After discovering that the Commerce Bank loan was not secured by the house, wife ceased making payments.

Husband made several payments, totaling $2,033.17. Husband’s mother needed the money from her CD, so she cashed it in, applying $11,445.26 to the balance of the loan.

On January 22, 1993 husband and his mother filed a “Motion to Modify, Motion for Contempt, and Petition for Damages.” In Count I, husband sought a reduction of child support. Counts II and III sought contempt and damages for wife’s failure to pay the indebtedness on the home. Husband’s mother joined in Count III. In Count IV, she prayed that a trust be imposed on the house for $11,445.26.

The trial court granted judgment in favor of husband and against wife for $2,033.17, less a $735.52 setoff. Also, the trial court granted husband’s mother a $11,445.26 judgment against wife and ordered wife to hold the property in trust for her to the extent of the judgment. Finally, the court reduced husband’s support obligation to $432.00 per month.

II.

Wife’s first point alleges the trial court erred in granting husband’s motion to modify child support because there “was no evidence of a substantial and continuing change of circumstances and the provisions of the original decree are reasonable.” Child support awards may be modified only upon a showing of changed circumstances so substantial and continuing as to make the terms of the original decree unreasonable. § 452.370.1. 1 If the current support deviates by twenty percent or more from the support prescribed by the guidelines and the criteria in Rule 88.01, a prima facie case has been *915 established. Id. The burden is on the party-seeking modification to establish the changed circumstances. Buckman v. Buckman, 857 S.W.2d 313, 317 (Mo.App.E.D.1993).

Father did not establish a prima facie case under the twenty percent rule of § 452.370.1. However, our inquiry does not stop there. Father may still establish changed circumstances independent of the twenty percent rule. See McMickle v. McMickle, 862 S.W.2d 477, 481 (Mo.App.W.D.1993).

The original decree required husband to pay $500.00 per month in child support. At that time, the parties hoped that their 18-year old child would attend college. Wife was given custody of the two children, and, although not clearly worded, it appears that the $500 child support was for two children.

The 18-year old child did not attend college. In May or June, 1993, he moved to husband’s home. Husband’s Form 14 reflected that his statutory obligation for support of one child was $432.00 per month.

Generally, the obligation of a parent to support a child terminates at age 18, unless the child is incapacitated or is enrolled in school. § 452.340.3, .4, and .5. Here, although “hoped for,” the child did not enroll in an institution of vocational or higher education after graduation. That fact, and the decrease in wife’s expenses due to his emancipation, is sufficient to support the trial court’s determination of a substantial and continuing change of circumstances. Point denied.

III.

In her second point, wife alleges the trial court erred in granting husband’s mother’s claim for a resulting trust on the property. Wife contends that husband’s mother did not have any beneficial interest in the property and the “uncontroverted evidence established that her guarantee and pledge of collateral was part of a loan transaction which is wholly inconsistent with a resulting trust.”

We first observe that confusion exists as to the type trust involved. Husband’s mother’s petition contains only one reference to a trust. In the prayer to her petition, she “prays the Decree of this Court enforcing said trust, declaring [wife] to be trustee of said property” for husband’s mother. In its decree, the trial court ordered that wife “hold the following described real estate in trust” for husband’s mother until wife satisfied the judgment awarded husband’s mother.

Wife’s brief premises error in the award of a resulting trust. However, husband’s mother argues that the trial court did not grant a resulting trust. Rather, she contends the court granted a constructive trust.

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

Related

Sullins v. Knierim
308 S.W.3d 241 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 2010)
Brown v. Brown
152 S.W.3d 911 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 2005)
Wright v. Wright
1 S.W.3d 52 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 1999)
Osborne v. Osborne
978 S.W.2d 786 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 1998)
King v. King
969 S.W.2d 903 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 1998)
Principal Mutual Life Ins. Co. v. Karney
5 F. Supp. 2d 720 (E.D. Missouri, 1998)
In Re the Marriage of Hunt
933 S.W.2d 437 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 1996)
Rogers v. Rogers
923 S.W.2d 381 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 1996)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
901 S.W.2d 912, 1995 Mo. App. LEXIS 1248, 1995 WL 391979, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/locke-v-locke-moctapp-1995.