B.A. v. Ready

• Decision Date: 23 February 2021
• Docket Number: WD83895
• Parties: B.A., Respondent, v. DOUGLAS READY, Appellant.
• Court: Court of Appeal of Missouri (US)

B.A., Respondent,
v.
DOUGLAS READY, Appellant.

WD83895

MISSOURI COURT OF APPEALS WESTERN DISTRICT

February 23, 2021

Appeal from the Circuit Court of Callaway County, Missouri
The Honorable J. Hasbrouck Jacobs, Judge

Before Division Four: Cynthia L. Martin, Chief Judge, and Lisa White Hardwick and Mark D. Pfeiffer, Judges

Mr. Douglas Ready ("Husband") appeals pro se from the judgment of the Circuit Court of Callaway County, Missouri ("trial court"), awarding attorney's fees to B.A.¹ ("Wife") for Wife's appellate attorney's fees relating to Husband's previous appeal to this Court regarding Husband's appeal of a dissolution judgment between the parties, B.N.A. (formerly B.N.R.) v. Ready, 614 S.W.3d 14 (Mo. App. W.D. 2020) (appeal dismissed for briefing deficiencies) ("Dissolution Appeal"). Due to numerous appellate briefing deficiencies in his present appeal, Husband's initial appellant's brief was stricken by Order of this Court dated October 2, 2020, and Husband was

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granted fifteen days to file an amended brief correcting the Rule 84.04 violations.² Husband filed an amended appellant's brief but failed to correct his briefing deficiencies; we, therefore, dismiss his appeal.

Procedural Background

The factual and procedural history relating to the parties' marriage and subsequent dissolution proceedings is detailed in the Dissolution Appeal and we need not repeat it here for our purposes, with the exception of footnote 3 from the Dissolution Appeal opinion, which describes the background of the present appeal:

[Husband] filed his notice of appeal on December 30, 2019. Subsequently, [Wife] petitioned the Trial Court for attorney fees stemming from this appeal pursuant to section 452.355. In Goins v. Goins, 406 S.W.3d 886, 889 (Mo. banc 2013), the Court held that the award of attorney fees on appeal is not an amendment of the dissolution judgment or entry of a new dissolution judgment[;] instead it relates to the collateral matter of a party's right to pursue a statutorily authorized award of attorney fees pursuant to section 452.355. "'[T]he circuit court, and only the circuit court, has jurisdiction to consider and grant an award of attorney fees pursuant to section 452.355.'" Id. (quoting Clarke v. Clarke, 983 S.W.2d 192, 195 (Mo. App. E.D. 1998)). The Trial Court ordered [Husband] to pay [Wife] $7,000.00 for her anticipated attorney fees. On June 18, 2020, [Husband] filed an "Amended Motion to Reconsider or Overturn/Set Aside Attorney Fees" in this Court, but because the Trial Court's judgment is a separate and distinct judgment subject to appeal, we deny [Husband's] motion. [Husband] has filed a notice of appeal stemming from the judgment, which has been docketed as WD83895.

Id. at 16 n.3. This appeal from the award of attorney's fees ensues.

Motion to Dismiss

On October 2, 2020, this Court issued an Order striking Husband's appellant's brief for violations of: Rule 84.04(d) as to Husband's points relied on; Rule 84.04(d)(5) as to Husband's failure to include a listing of cases or other authority that Husband relied upon; and Rule 84.04(e) as to Husband's failure to include in his argument a concise statement of the applicable standard

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of review and failure to include a concise statement describing whether the error was preserved for appellate review and, if so, how it was preserved. Husband was given fifteen days to file an amended appellant's brief to address the Rule 84.04 briefing deficiencies and Husband's second effort was no better. Wife responded to Husband's amended appellant's brief by filing a motion seeking to strike Husband's appellate brief and to...