Posey v. Posey

386 S.W.2d 884
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedJanuary 22, 1965
DocketNo. 16594
StatusPublished
Cited by5 cases

This text of 386 S.W.2d 884 (Posey v. Posey) 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
Posey v. Posey, 386 S.W.2d 884 (Tex. Ct. App. 1965).

Opinion

MASSEY, Chief Justice.

All proceedings below were by the trial court sitting without a jury.

At one time, during the course of the events culminating in the judgment from which this appeal has been taken, the father of Marion Bob Posey, an appellant, was alive and participating. Nina Posey, also an appellant, mother of Marion Bob Posey, succeeded to her husband’s interest as of the time of any judgment to which we may refer. For purposes of simplification in our [886]*886explanation of events, we can safely treat the mother as having been in the position which was actually hers alone as of the date of the final judgment.

Shirley Posey, appellee, was formerly the wife of Marion Bob Posey. It was by cross-action that she sought and obtained a divorce.

Hereinafter the foregoing parties will be referred to as Marion Bob, Shirley, and Nina.

Pending on the docket of the District Court of Montague County, Texas, at one and the same time, were Causes Nos. 14,120 and 14,267. Under the issues made between Marion Bob and Shirley under Cause No. 14,120 was the matter of Shirley’s entitlement to a decree of divorce, and also the matter of the proper division of the community property of the parties. Nina was a party to that suit under Shirley’s allegations that some of the community property of herself and Marion Bob was in Nina’s hands and/or held by her as a trustee. Following a hearing on the merits of the divorce case, the trial court entered a decree wherein it was declared that Shirley was entitled to and awarded a divorce and custody of her children. An amount was also awarded to her as an attorney’s fee.

The decree did not purport to divide the “certain community property” treated as belonging to the parties, without identification made. As part and parcel of the decree the Court directed: “ * * * it would be to the best interest of the parties that a receiver be appointed with instructions to take charge of and sell such property and hold the proceeds thereof until further ordered by the court. * * * ” The Court proceeded to order the appointment of a disinterested attorney as the receiver to perform such duty. However, this attorney never qualified as a receiver and never undertook to perform any of the duties directed to be performed.

Under Cause No. 14,267 Nina was suing to collect debts evidenced by certain promissory notes executed by Marion Bob. From the record as a whole, it would appear that the latter was not asserting any defense to his mother’s suit. In any event, Shirley felt it advisable to intervene and advance all possible defenses which might operate to defeat Nina’s claim in order that the size of the community estate of herself and Marion Bob would not be unjustly diminished. She did intervene and became a party to the suit.

After the time of the interlocutory decree in the divorce case (Cause No. 14,120), the issues in the suit upon the matter of debt, evidenced by notes (Cause No. 14,267) had not yet been tried. The trial court entered an order consolidating the two cases under the latter number, for the dual purpose of determining for what, if anything, the parties might be entitled to judgment as against one another. It is from the judgment rendered under Cause No. 14,267, the consolidated case determining the property rights of all three of these parties, that Marion Bob and Nina have perfected a joint appeal. In its judgment the Court ignored the fact that there had been an earlier provision for a receiver. Since the person named as receiver never qualified it would be proper to treat such provision of the former decree as though no receiver had ever been named.

By their appeal Marion Bob and Nina have obviously waived any contention by either as against the other, although their interests would in law be adverse. The situation is such that Marion Bob must be treated as obligated to pay Nina at least as much as the amount awarded Nina in judgment as against him, though it might be our conclusion that Nina’s judgment as against him be excessive, — and Nina must be treated as entitled to no more as against Marion Bob than was awarded her by the judgment, though it might be our conclusion that Marion Bob had a greater obligation to her than was decreed.

The nature of the appeal is such that the ultimate matter for determination is wheth[887]*887er Shirley was awarded property constituting no part of the community estate of Marion Boh and Shirley in that it belonged to Nina,- — and whether the court erred in its determination of the indentity and extent of the community property divided between Marion Bob and Shirley, and/or erred in the division thereof between them.

A substantial number of the points of error are overruled in view of our conclusion that the prior interlocutory judgment of divorce was part and parcel of the final judgment from which the appeal was perfected. The form of the judgment entered in the divorce case prior to the order of consolidation settled certain matters. In other words, pursuant to the grant of a divorce of the parties, all matters in controversy and made issues requiring determination pursuant to any final decree of divorce, except upon the matter of property division, were settled thereby. The decree was an interlocutory judgment which did not become final and appealable until the entry of judgment after the trial following the consolidation of the causes. Though Marion Bob and Shirley were thereby divorced, they were not divorced by a form of decree of which either could complain on any appeal, the case not having become “ripe for appeal” because of the persisting issues not then disposed of. The order of consolidation necessarily carried along with it, as part and parcel of the consolidated causes (and whether the parties, or the court, understood such legal result), the issues upon which a decree had been rendered in the form of an interlocutory judgment. That the interlocutory judgment did not affirm its character to be such was immaterial. It was interlocutory because issues made by the pleadings in the divorce case — those upon proper property division — remained and persisted as matter of dispute after the entry of the decree. These issues were not finally determined thereby, but were finally determined by the judgment which was rendered after the trial of the consolidated causes. See Vernon’s Ann.Civ. Tex.St, Article 4638, and cases annotated thereunder relative to when it is essential to finality of judgment decreeing divorce that property rights be adjudicated.

One point of error, obviously that of Marion Bob, contends that there was “no evidence” before the court which would justify a judgment of divorce in favor of Shirley. In this connection it was pointed out that the statement of facts contained no evidence bearing upon the matter of that cruel treatment on the part of Marion Bob, on account of which Shirley contended she was entitled to a divorce. Yet the certificate to the statement of facts, signed by all the attorneys in the case, recited that they “do hereby agree that the foregoing 322 pages, comprising Volumes I and II, constitute a full, true, and correct transcript in Question and Answer form of all the testimony and proceedings had, and all documentary evidence introduced during the trial of said cause.”

It is obvious from the whole record, and from the briefs of the parties, that some if not all the participants on the trial of the property matters had a distorted view of the legal situation.

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

Related

Templeton v. Unigard Security Insurance Co.
537 S.W.2d 315 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 1976)
Borchert v. Scott
460 S.W.2d 28 (Supreme Court of Arkansas, 1970)
Eastman v. Biggers
434 S.W.2d 439 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 1968)
Roye v. Roye
404 S.W.2d 92 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 1966)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
386 S.W.2d 884, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/posey-v-posey-texapp-1965.