Watters v. Foreman

284 N.W.2d 850, 204 Neb. 670, 1979 Neb. LEXIS 1163
CourtNebraska Supreme Court
DecidedOctober 30, 1979
Docket42393
StatusPublished
Cited by11 cases

This text of 284 N.W.2d 850 (Watters v. Foreman) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Nebraska Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Watters v. Foreman, 284 N.W.2d 850, 204 Neb. 670, 1979 Neb. LEXIS 1163 (Neb. 1979).

Opinions

Krivosha, C. J.

The appellant herein (Watters) appeals from a judgment of the District Court for Madison County, Nebraska, entered by District Judge Eugene McFadden, which sustained the appellee’s (Foreman) motion for summary judgment and denied Watters’ motion for summary judgment. We have examined the files and records in this case and have concluded that the trial court was in error in sustaining Foreman’s motion for summary judgment and denying Watters’ motion for summary judgment, and therefore reverse the action of the trial court and remand the proceeding to the District Court for Madison County with directions to enter summary judgment in favor of Watters and against Foreman.

The issue in this appeal is whether, under the provisions of section 42-365, R. R. S. 1943, the remarriage of Watters results in a termination of alimony provided for by the trial court’s decree. We think the record is clear as a matter of fact that only the death of Watters could terminate the payment of alimony and that as a matter of law Watters remains entitled to receive payment notwithstanding her subsequent remarriage.

The evidence discloses that on May 23, 1974, after 33 years duration, the marriage between Watters and Foreman was dissolved. The decree entered by District Judge George Dittrick recited in part: “That the stipulation and agreement entered into by [672]*672the parties in open court is fair and reasonable and should be approved, allowed and incorporated in this Decree.” The record before the court does not fully disclose what was the stipulation and agreement entered into by the parties, but presumably it is in part what was thereafter reflected in the decree.

The decree provided that Watters should be awarded the sum of $18,500 “in full and complete settlement of all property rights of said petitioner in the property of the parties, save and except such as is awarded to her herein.” She likewise received a 1973 Cadillac, free and clear of all encumbrances, and the household furniture and fixtures in her possession, as well as her own personal property. All other property of the parties, whether real, personal, or mixed, was awarded to Foreman, except with regard to the interest the parties had in property in Mexico, which is not otherwise described in the decree. With regard to the property in Mexico, real, personal, and mixed, it was to be assigned equally to the parties. Foreman was likewise ordered to pay Watters’ attorney the sum of $5,000. The awarding of such a fee in a noncontested case raises some presumption that the value of the marital estate was considerable, and that an award of $18,500, a 1973 Cadillac, and household goods not otherwise described would be considerably less than a fair and equitable division of the marital estate of the parties. The deposition of Foreman, taken on April 7, 1978, and considered by the trial court in its ruling on the two motions for summary judgment, indicates, by Foreman’s own admission, the existence of a marital estate in excess of $200,000 at the time of the dissolution of the marriage.

The provision of the decree which causes the difficulty herein is paragraph 6, which provides: ‘‘That said Respondent [Foreman] shall pay to said Petitioner [Watters] the sum of $1,000.00 monthly for a period of 10 years and 1 month, which payments [673]*673shall commence on the first day of July, 1974, and shall continue for 121 consecutive monthly payments upon like day of each month, which includes the first payment, which payments shall cease upon the death of said Petitioner [Watters] prior to the making of all of such payments, which payments shall be for the support and maintenance and as alimony for said Petitioner [Watters], and in the event of the death of said Respondent [Foreman], the personal representative of said deceased Respondent [Foreman] shall continue to make such payments during the period herein provided, all of which payments shall be deductible by said Respondent [Foreman] for income tax purposes and shall be includable in taxable income of said Petitioner [Watters], and said provisions for alimony and property settlement are final and complete and not subject to revision or amendment.” (Emphasis supplied.)

Thereafter, on October 1, 1977, Watters remarried. On November 30, 1977, Foreman filed an application in the District Court for Madison County, Nebraska, alleging that Watters had remarried and that therefore, pursuant to the provisions of section 42-365, R. R. S. 1943, all further alimony payments should terminate. Section 42-365, R. R. S. 1943, provides in part as follows: “Except as otherwise agreed by the parties in writing or by order of the court, alimony orders shall terminate upon the death of either party or the remarriage of the recipient.” Foreman argues that the requirements of section 42-365, R. R. S. 1943, are absolute and self-executing, and therefore as a matter of law, Watters having remarried, the order for alimony must terminate. It was apparently on that basis that the trial court granted the motion for summary judgment.

Foreman’s position would be well taken were it not for the introductory language of the pertinent portion of section 42-365, R. R. S. 1943, which provides: “Except as otherwise agreed by the parties [674]*674in writing or by order of the court * * (Emphasis supplied.)

As reflected by its introductory language, the decree ordered by the court appears to reflect the intention of the parties. Watters maintains that the intention of the parties and the order of the court are to the effect that neither party could seek to have the decree revised or modified as to alimony and that only the death of Watters could relieve Foreman from paying Watters $1,000 per month for 121 months. Nothing else, including her remarriage, could result in a revision or amendment. We believe a clear reading of the record and the decree supports that view as a matter of law.

The central question which must be addressed in reviewing this matter relates to the trial court’s direction in the decree that the “provisions for alimony and property settlement are final and complete and not subject to revision or amendment.” The provisions with regard to the payment of $18,500, the Cadillac, the household goods, and the property in Mexico could not be subject to revision or amendment. The payment of money and the division of property were to be made forthwith and were not subject to revision. The only item remaining which could be subject to later amendment or revision was the provision for installment payments in paragraph 6 of the decree; and with regard to those payments, the court specifically ordered it was to be “final and complete and not subject to revision or amendment.” (Emphasis supplied.)

Can the exception to section 42-365, R. R. S. 1943, regarding remarriage, take effect only if the word “remarriage” is used, or can we look to the entire document? We think the use of the word “remarriage,” while desirable and helpful, is not absolute. The language used in the decree undoubtedly could have been clearer, yet any other conclusion than that reached by our decision herein would render [675]*675the language meaningless. In view of the words used, we can only presume the court intended that the payments provided for by paragraph 6 of the decree were to remain absolute and constant for 121 months, subject to termination only in the event of Watters’ death. That is the clear meaning of paragraph 6, and it is sufficient to bring the decree within the exception to section 42-365, R. R. S.

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Watters v. Foreman
284 N.W.2d 850 (Nebraska Supreme Court, 1979)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
284 N.W.2d 850, 204 Neb. 670, 1979 Neb. LEXIS 1163, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/watters-v-foreman-neb-1979.