Dupree v. Dupree
| Citation | 479 N.Y.S.2d 491,62 N.Y.2d 1009,468 N.E.2d 673 |
| Parties | , 468 N.E.2d 673 In the Matter of Timothy DUPREE, Appellant, v. Lynn DUPREE, Respondent. |
| Decision Date | 02 July 1984 |
| Court | New York Court of Appeals |
The order of the Appellate Division, 98 A.D.2d 898, 470 N.Y.S.2d 888, should be reversed, with costs, and the case remitted to that court for the exercise of its discretion.
The parties were divorced on July 28, 1981, and the husband was required to pay $100 per week in child support pursuant to the terms of a stipulation which was incorporated and merged into the divorce judgment. At the time of the parties' divorce, the husband was earning approximately $20,000 per year doing road excavation and backfill work. The job took him away from his family in Ogdensburg, New York, but he returned home on weekends to visit them. He voluntarily left that position in September of 1981, a short time after a wage deduction order of $100 per week had been entered against him by the wife for collection of the support obligation. He thereafter took a job closer to the family with a starting salary of around $9,145 per year. After payroll deductions for child support, State and Federal income taxes, Social Security, union dues, State retirement contributions and health insurance, the husband's net weekly take-home pay was $35.79. As of September, 1982, his annual salary had increased to approximately $10,596.
After dismissing two petitions for a downward modification of the support obligation, Family Court granted a third such petition and reduced the husband's child support payments to $65 per week. The court found that the husband had left the more lucrative position primarily because of the entry of the wage deduction order. The court also noted that the husband's motive may have been to be closer to his family and to get a more secure position, though finding that had he worked diligently he could have continued in the road work job. According to the court, the case was complicated by the facts that the husband could not return to his prior position, that he has limited job skills and that he could not continue to pay $100 per week in support out of his current income. The court thus granted the petition for a downward modification and reduced the support obligation to $65 per week.
The Appellate Division reversed, on the law, and dismissed the petition. The court held that a court should not grant a downward modification where a spouse's own actions or...
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David W. v. Julia W.
...his support obligations by his own voluntary actions or inactions regarding his employment situation (Matter of Dupree v. Dupree, 62 N.Y.2d 1009, 1011, 479 N.Y.S.2d 491, 468 N.E.2d 673). While plaintiff's stated income has supposedly declined from $134,044 to $91,200 in the course of the si......
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Montgomery v. List
...has a voluntary reduction in income and a legitimate and reasonable basis for such a reduction (see e.g. Matter of Dupree v. Dupree, 62 N.Y.2d 1009, 1011–1012, 479 N.Y.S.2d 491, 468 N.E.2d 673 [1984] ; 104 N.Y.S.3d 802 Martusewicz v. Martusewicz, 217 A.D.2d 926, 927, 630 N.Y.S.2d 156 [4th D......
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Parmenter v. Nash, 898
...a parent quits a job for a sufficiently compelling reason, such as the need to live closer to a child (see Matter of Dupree v. Dupree, 62 N.Y.2d 1009, 1010–1012, 479 N.Y.S.2d 491, 468 N.E.2d 673 [1984] ; Matter of Smith v. McCarthy, 143 A.D.3d 726, 727–728, 38 N.Y.S.3d 588 [2d Dept. 2016] ;......
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Davis v. Davis
...Alfano, 151 A.D.2d 530, 542 N.Y.S.2d 313; Tsoucalas v. Tsoucalas, 140 A.D.2d 333, 527 N.Y.S.2d 828; cf., Matter of Dupree v. Dupree, 62 N.Y.2d 1009, 479 N.Y.S.2d 491, 468 N.E.2d 673; see also, Family Ct.Act § 437). The appellant, a college graduate, had previously worked as a manager for th......