Daniel v. Daniel

• Decision Date: 12 March 2021
• Docket Number: A20A1938
• Citation: 856 S.E.2d 452,358 Ga.App. 880
• Parties: DANIEL v. DANIEL.
• Court: Georgia Court of Appeals

358 Ga.App. 880

856 S.E.2d 452

DANIEL

v.DANIEL.

A20A1938

Court of Appeals of Georgia.

March 12, 2021

Joseph Scott Key, Kayci Nicole Timmons, for Appellant.

Adam Richard Nagel, Travis Daniel, for Appellee.

Markle, Judge.

Jamie Daniel appeals from the trial court's final divorce decree and order on reconsideration in the divorce action against Travis Daniel, challenging the trial court's distribution of the marital property and its calculations of child support and other expenses related to the children in favor of Travis. On appeal, she contends that (1) the trial court erred by (a) not attaching to the child support addendum certain documents required by statute, (b) miscalculating child support based on the evidence submitted, and (c) not requiring Travis to pay for certain uncovered medical expenses; (2) inequitably dividing the marital and personal property; (3) not ordering Travis to reimburse her for expenditures paid on behalf of the children and for the marital home prior to the parties’ consent temporary order and by failing to clarify the date through which Travis was required to pay his portion of the children's uncovered medical expenses under the contempt provisions of the decree; and (4) denying portions of her motion for reconsideration.

For the reasons that follow, we affirm the trial court's decree as to its determination of child support and payment of uncovered medical expenses not deemed medically necessary.

We also affirm the trial court's decree as to the distribution of the marital property. However, we remand the case to the trial court with direction to clarify its award of two specific items of property. We also remand the case to the trial court to determine the date through which Travis is required to pay medical expenses as ordered under the contempt provisions of the divorce decree. Finally, we reverse the trial court's determination that it lacked authority to order Travis to reimburse Jamie for expenditures paid on behalf of the children and for the marital home prior to the parties’ consent temporary order, and remand the case to the trial court with direction to make further findings in this regard.

"In the appellate review of a bench trial, we will not set aside the trial court's factual findings unless they are clearly erroneous, and this Court properly gives due deference to the opportunity of the trial court to judge the credibility of the witnesses. But when a question of law is at issue, we review the trial court's decision de novo." (Citations and punctuation omitted.) Sedehi v. Chamberlin , 344 Ga. App. 512, 516, 811 S.E.2d 24 (2018).

So viewed, the record shows that Jamie and Travis married in June 2002 and have three minor children. After 15 years of marriage, they separated, and Travis subsequently filed for divorce on grounds the marriage was irretrievably broken. At the time of divorce, both parties were gainfully employed; Travis worked at McKenny's, Inc., and Jamie was the sole member of two businesses, Jamie M. Daniel & Associates, Inc., which she ran from the marital home, and Middle Georgia Property Management Company, LLC.

In his complaint for divorce, Travis sought joint legal custody of the children with visitation rights; equitable distribution of marital property, assets, and debts; to keep his separate property; and attorney fees and costs. Jamie counterclaimed, alleging Travis had been unfaithful. She further sought temporary and permanent joint legal custody and primary physical custody of the children; child support; life and health insurance with the children as beneficiaries; equitable division of assets and liabilities; temporary and permanent exclusive use of the marital home and surrounding property, as well as two other properties owned by the parties; the business she runs from the marital home, and all assets owned by the business; four vehicles; and alimony and attorney fees and costs.

Although this was a contentious divorce, involving numerous court proceedings, the parties were able to reach some agreements, including a temporary consent agreement to the sale of an RV, and a temporary order regarding custody of the children, visitation, and one of Travis's life insurance policies.¹ In another temporary consent order, the parties agreed, among other things, to place two of their properties in Forsyth up for sale, one located on Westbrooks Road and another on Weldon Road, and that Jamie would continue to pay the mortgage on the Westbrooks Road property until further order of the court. They also agreed that Jamie would receive the rental payments for the property located at Blount Road in Forsyth, and that the proceeds from the Westbrooks Road sale would be used towards the outstanding Wells Fargo equity line of credit, with the remaining balance to be placed in Jamie's attorney's trust account. As to child support, they agreed that Travis would pay Jamie $2,037 per month, which included payment of the children's private school tuition, and an additional $500 per month in child support. They further agreed that Travis would continue to cover the children under his health insurance, and the parties would equally divide any medical expenses not covered by insurance, including "medical, dental, orthodontic, ophthamology expenses, psychological, hospitalization, co-pays or drug expenses" within 30 days of receiving documentation of same.

Despite their agreements, there remained several unresolved issues, including future child support; division of personal property and three jointly owned real properties; Jamie's contempt claims against Travis for failure to pay child support and his portion of unrecovered medical expenses for the children under the parties’ consent temporary order;² Jamie's request for reimbursement of certain expenses made on behalf of the children and the household; and Jamie's request for alimony and attorney fees. As to these issues, the case proceeded to a three-day bench trial.

Following trial, the trial court granted Travis's petition for divorce, awarding the parties joint legal custody of the children with primary physical custody to Jamie, and it issued a child support addendum, reflecting calculations of the parties’ income for purposes of child support. Relevant to this appeal, the trial court specifically found that: (1) Travis's gross monthly income was $6,073.84, and Jamie's was $10,416.67, and it ordered Travis to pay $996.00 monthly in support; (2) the parties were each responsible for 50 percent of the childrens’ medical expenses that are not covered by insurance, but not including over-the-counter medications and chiropractic visits unless they were medically necessary and ordered by the childrens’ doctor; (3) Travis received sole and exclusive possession of two dirt bikes, and a utility trailer, and Jamie received a car hauler trailer; (4) the marital home was awarded to the parties as joint tenants in common, with Jamie having exclusive right and possession of it until the youngest child turned 18, and that the parties were to equally pay the mortgage, taxes, and insurance, with Jamie paying all utilities and maintenance;³ (5) the parties were to equally divide the monthly payments, taxes, insurance, and expenses for their property located on High Falls Road in Jackson until the property sold, and then they would equally divide the proceeds; (6) the parties were to equally divide the monthly proceeds from the sale of their property on Blount Road, which was sold during the pendency of the divorce, until the contract is paid in full; (7) Travis retained ownership of and was permitted to retrieve from the marital residence his personal jewelry and all other personal property; and (8) neither party was to pay alimony, and each was responsible for paying their own attorney fees. With respect to Jamie's contempt claim, the trial court ordered Travis to pay Jamie $9,037.48, within 90 days, per the parties’ temporary order, representing half the children's unpaid medical expenses not covered by insurance owed since January 2018, "to date." However, because there was no court order entered prior to the parties’ temporary order, the trial court found that it could not order Travis to reimburse Jamie for any expenditures on the marital home or the children prior to that temporary order.

Jamie moved the trial court to reconsider the divorce decree, seeking to change the calculation of her monthly income; to require Travis to pay for over-the-counter medications and chiropractic visits; to clarify the time frame in which Travis should pay her for uncovered medical expenses; to alter the equitable distribution of marital property; to change its contempt ruling and hold Travis in contempt for non-payment of the children's expenses prior to the parties’ temporary order, and to clarify the dates included in Travis's arrearage for the children's unpaid medical expenses prior to January 2018; and to reconsider its denial of her request for alimony and attorney fees.

Upon reconsideration, and following a hearing, the trial court clarified that Travis should pay Jamie for uncovered medical expenses within 30 days of receiving documentation of the expenses, and denied the motion as to the remaining issues. With respect to payment of over-the-counter medications and chiropractic visits, the trial court found that Jamie frequently took the minor children to the doctor, and thus it would not delete this language from the divorce decree. Jamie filed an application for discretionary appeal, which we granted, and this appeal followed.⁴

1. Jamie first argues that the trial court erred in enforcing the child support addendum because: (a) the child support worksheet was not attached, as required by statute; (b) there was insufficient evidence to support the trial court's calculation of her income for purposes of determining child support, alimony and attorney fees; and (c) the trial court exceeded its authority in determining what expenses...