SONYA GOLDEN, APPELLANT,
v.
GARY GOLDEN, APPELLEE

Fla. 3d DCA | 1978-03-07
No. 77-2081
Before PEARSON, NATHAN and HUB-BART, JJ.
356 So. 2d 1274 Florida District Court of Appeal, Third District (1978) Positive Treatment
Cited by 4 cases

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Synopsis

In a dissolution of marriage case, the former wife appealed a trial court's dismissal of her motion to enforce a stipulation requiring the former husband to pay college tuition expenses for their minor son. The appellate court reversed, holding that the trial court had jurisdiction to hear the petition and that technical pleading defects should be resolved after evidence is presented, not by dismissal.


Holding

The trial court had jurisdiction to hear the petition for tuition expenses because the stipulation was incorporated into the final judgment. While the obligation is contingent on a finding that the husband is financially capable, pleading defects regarding allegations of financial ability are premature objections that should be resolved after evidence is presented, not by dismissal.


Headnotes

[1] A trial court has jurisdiction to enforce a stipulation agreement regarding child support and education that is incorporated into a final judgment of dissolution.

[2] A petition seeking enforcement of tuition expenses, contingent on the obligor's financial ability, is properly before the court and requires an evidentiary hearing to det…

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Key Quotes

“It is apparent that a trial court has jurisdiction to enforce a formal agreement between the parties with respect to the maintenance of children when that agreement is made a part of the final judgment.”

Establishes the foundational principle that trial courts have jurisdiction over incorporated stipulations regarding child support and education.

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Facts & Procedural History

A final judgment of dissolution was entered on June 21, 1973, incorporating a stipulation agreement approved by the court. The stipulation required th…

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Opinion of the Court
PEARSON, Judge.

PEARSON, Judge.

This interlocutory appeal is by the former wife in a dissolution of marriage proceeding. She appeals a post-judgment order denying her motion for enforcement of the final judgment of dissolution by requiring the former husband to pay tuition expenses of a minor child. The trial judge dismissed the motion by an order which stated the grounds to be: . that this court lacks jurisdiction to consider the Petition for Tuition Expenses of the Respondent, Sonya Golden, and the petition is hereby dismissed.”

The determinative question presented on this appeal is whether the trial court correctly held that it did not have jurisdiction to consider the petition. The following facts of the case are considered salient to this holding: A final judgment of dissolution of marriage was entered on June 21, 1973. Included in the final judgment was a provision on the support and education of the minor son:

“2. The parties dictated a stipulation agreement into the record during the trial of this cause which was held in Dade County, Florida, on June 21st, 1973. That the Stipulation was approved by the Court and by reference, the same is fully incorporated in this Final Judgment. The Court will set out the salient features of the parties’ agreement, which is now the Order of the Court, viz-a-viz: **

“(E-l) The Petitioner will provide, if financially able, his son, Douglas, with the funds necessary to attend college for four years (if Douglas so desires). Tuition, room, board and all necessary and reasonable expenses shall be borne by the Petitioner for this purpose.”

It is apparent that a trial court has jurisdiction to enforce a formal agreement between the parties with respect to the maintenance of children when that agreement is made a part of the final judgment. See Zakoor v. Zakoor, 240 So. 2d 193 (Fla. 4th DCA 1970).

Appellee husband proposes that jurisdiction does not rest because the petition was improperly drawn in that it was necessary for appellant, as a petitioner for tuition expenses for her son, to allege that appellee was financially able to provide said tuition expenses. Owca v. Zemzicki, 137 So. 2d 876 (Fla. 2d DCA 1962); and Fla.R. Civ.P. 1.190(b). It is true that the obligation for support and tuition expenses is contingent upon a finding by the court that appellee is financially capable. But that determination can only be made after the taking of evidence. The appellee must be presumed capable until a change of circumstances is shown.

We conclude that appellee’s objections are premature and are such as could be made after the presentation of evidence. The court has jurisdiction to proceed to hear the petition, and the petition must be granted or denied according to the evidence presented.

Reversed and remanded with directions.


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Citator

Cited By

  • Singer v. Noreen Singer, 652 So. 2d 454 (Fla. 4th DCA 1995)
    …nterpreted rather than a contract to be enforced. See generally Eaton v. Eaton, 238 So. 2d 166 (Fla. 4th DCA 1970). See also Solomon v. Gordon, 148 Fla. 572, 4 So. 2d 710 (1941); Riley v. Riley, 509 So. 2d 1366 (Fla. 5th DCA 1987); Golden v. Golden, 356 So. 2d 1274 (Fla. 3d DCA 1978). It is undisputed that the clause in question was an integral part of the incorporated agreement. On remand, the provision should be construed by the trial court in light of the totality of the circumstances at the time the judgm…
  • Theisen v. Theisen, 463 So. 2d 427 (Fla. 3d DCA 1985)
    …ligation to set up a $2,500 trust account for the benefit of the children at age eighteen as required by the final judgment. The husband has yet to set up this account and may be required to do so by further order of the court. See Golden v. Golden, 356 So. 2d 1274, 1275 (Fla. 3d DCA 1978); Smithwick v. Smithwick, 343 So. 2d 945, 947 (Fla. 3d DCA 1977); Feder v. Feder, 291 So. 2d 641, 642-43 (Fla. 3d DCA 1974). In all other respects we are unpersuaded that the trial court in any way abused its discretion in…

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