Michael G. Tomera v. Rachel B. Tomera (mem. dec.)

CourtIndiana Court of Appeals
DecidedSeptember 27, 2018
Docket18A-DR-587
StatusPublished

This text of Michael G. Tomera v. Rachel B. Tomera (mem. dec.) (Michael G. Tomera v. Rachel B. Tomera (mem. dec.)) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Indiana Court of Appeals primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Michael G. Tomera v. Rachel B. Tomera (mem. dec.), (Ind. Ct. App. 2018).

Opinion

MEMORANDUM DECISION FILED Pursuant to Ind. Appellate Rule 65(D), Sep 27 2018, 6:42 am this Memorandum Decision shall not be CLERK regarded as precedent or cited before any Indiana Supreme Court Court of Appeals court except for the purpose of establishing and Tax Court

the defense of res judicata, collateral estoppel, or the law of the case.

ATTORNEY FOR APPELLANT ATTORNEY FOR APPELLEE Mark A. Bates Larry D. Stassin Schererville, Indiana Tanzillo, Stassin & Babcock, P.C. Dyer, Indiana

IN THE COURT OF APPEALS OF INDIANA

Michael G. Tomera, September 27, 2018 Appellant-Petitioner, Court of Appeals Case No. 18A-DR-587 v. Appeal from the Lake Circuit Court Rachel B. Tomera, The Honorable Marissa Appellee-Respondent McDermott, Judge The Honorable Lisa A. Berdine, Magistrate Trial Court Cause No. 45C01-1508-DR-691

Crone, Judge.

Court of Appeals of Indiana | Memorandum Decision 18A-DR-587 | September 27, 2018 Page 1 of 18 Case Summary [1] Michael G. Tomera (“Father”) appeals a trial court decree and grant of request

for relocation in proceedings dissolving his marriage to Rachel B. Tomera

(“Mother”). He contends that the trial court erred in granting Mother’s

relocation request, in calculating his weekly child support obligation, and in

granting Mother’s request for attorney fees. We affirm.

Facts and Procedural History [2] Father is a long-time Indiana resident, and Mother was raised in Arkansas.

They met in 2011 on a cruise ship. For about one year, they maintained a long-

distance relationship, often meeting in the St. Louis area. Mother relocated

from Arkansas to Indiana in June 2012. Mother and Father married in 2013

and had a child (“Child”) in 2014.

[3] Father is employed as a materials handler and works rotating shifts each week.

His gross weekly earnings were $1246 in 2016 and $1814 in 2017, and he

earned a bonus of $8206 in 2017. Mother is a certified surgical technician and

works as a provisional employee for an Indiana hospital system at an hourly

rate of $22.50. As a provisional employee, she works only at the times and

places designated by her employer. Her weekly work schedule varies from

about sixteen to thirty hours. The full-time job opportunities in the area would

require her to be on call through the night.

[4] In August 2015, Father petitioned for marital dissolution, and the parties agreed

to a provisional order awarding primary physical custody to Mother, with joint

Court of Appeals of Indiana | Memorandum Decision 18A-DR-587 | September 27, 2018 Page 2 of 18 legal custody and parenting time for Father. In December 2015, Mother filed a

notice of intent to relocate herself and Child to Arkansas on grounds of

extended family support, rent-free housing, and full-time employment

opportunities with regular work hours. She proposed a parenting time plan for

Father that would approximate the total hours outlined in the agreed order.

Father filed an objection to relocation and requested a partial modification of

the agreed provisional order with respect to the parties’ relative financial

contributions. Mother filed a request for attorney fees. The trial court

conducted a two-day hearing on all pending matters. Father requested written

findings of fact and conclusions thereon pursuant to Indiana Trial Rule 52(A),

and the court instructed the parties to submit proposed findings and

conclusions. The trial court issued a decree dissolving the parties’ marriage,

granting Mother’s request for relocation, denying Father’s request to modify the

provisional orders, setting child support and parenting time, and granting

Mother’s request for attorney fees. Father now appeals. Additional facts will

be provided as necessary.

Discussion and Decision

Section 1 – We find no reversible error in the source and form of the trial court’s findings and find the evidence sufficient to support the challenged findings. [5] Father raises several arguments concerning the trial court’s findings. Where, as

here, a trial court has issued findings of fact and conclusions thereon, we apply

a two-tiered standard of review, determining first whether the evidence supports

Court of Appeals of Indiana | Memorandum Decision 18A-DR-587 | September 27, 2018 Page 3 of 18 the findings and second whether the findings support the judgment. Sexton v.

Sexton, 970 N.E.2d 707, 710 (Ind. Ct. App. 2012), trans. denied. We will not set

aside a trial court’s findings unless they are clearly erroneous, meaning that our

review of the record leaves us firmly convinced that a mistake has been made.

Id. We give due regard to the trial court’s opportunity to assess the credibility

of witnesses and therefore consider only the evidence and reasonable inferences

favorable to the judgment without reweighing the evidence or assessing witness

credibility. Nelson v. Nelson, 10 N.E.3d 1283, 1285 (Ind. Ct. App. 2014). We do

not defer to the trial court’s conclusions of law and will find clear error if the

court has applied an incorrect legal standard. Sexton, 970 N.E.2d at 710.

[6] As a preliminary matter, we address Father’s assertion of error with respect to

the source of the trial court’s findings. He correctly observes that most of the

trial court’s findings were adopted verbatim from Mother’s proposed findings.

A trial court’s verbatim adoption of a party’s proposed findings is not

prohibited. Country Contractors, Inc. v. A Westside Storage of Indianapolis, Inc., 4

N.E.3d 677, 694 (Ind. Ct. App. 2014). “Although we by no means encourage

the wholesale adoption of a party’s proposed findings and conclusions, the

critical inquiry is whether such findings, as adopted by the court, are clearly

erroneous.” Id. In reviewing the trial court’s findings in this case, specifically

comparing them to Mother’s proposed findings, we found that although the

court adopted a significant number of Mother’s findings verbatim, many of

Mother’s proposed findings were either not adopted at all, adopted only in part,

or changed to more accurately reflect the facts rather than opinions about the

Court of Appeals of Indiana | Memorandum Decision 18A-DR-587 | September 27, 2018 Page 4 of 18 facts. As such, the trial court cannot be said to have engaged in a wholesale

adoption of Mother’s findings. To the extent that Father claims that opposing

counsel’s submission (and the trial court’s adoption) of any of Mother’s findings

that lack evidentiary support is tantamount to attorney misconduct and/or ex

parte communications with the trial court, we find this argument to be a

nonstarter.

[7] That said, we note that some of the trial court’s findings are not proper findings.

Instead, they are merely recitations of testimony and witness opinions. For

example, some include phrases such as, “[Mother] testified,” “[Father]

testified,” “[Witness] testified,” or “[Mother] does not believe.” See, e.g.,

Appellant’s App. Vol. 2 at 11, 15, 18, 21. Findings that indicate that the

testimony or evidence was this or that are not findings of fact. Parks v. Delaware

Cty. Dep’t of Child Servs., 862 N.E.2d 1275, 1279 (Ind. Ct. App. 2007). Rather, a

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