Hoehn v. Hoehn
Decision Date | 08 April 1981 |
Citation | 11 Mass.App.Ct. 1000,418 N.E.2d 648 |
Parties | Ralf HOEHN v. Luise B. HOEHN. |
Court | Appeals Court of Massachusetts |
Arthur C. Sullivan, Jr., Lowell, for defendant.
Lawrence C. Weisman, Lowell, for plaintiff.
Before HALE, C. J., and CUTTER and PERRETTA, JJ.
RESCRIPT.
In this action for divorce brought by the husband, the wife defended on the ground of mental illness. After trial the judge made written findings and rulings in which she correctly found that the acts of the defendant towards the plaintiff constituted cruel and abusive treatment and she properly determined the only issue to be whether, because of her mental illness, the defendant was unable to comprehend the nature and consequences of her actions. See Cosgrove v. Cosgrove, 351 Mass. 64, 66-67, 217 N.E.2d 754 (1966). As stated in Cosgrove, that issue is one of fact. Id. at 67, 217 N.E.2d 754. We read the judge's findings as holding that while some of the acts were committed while the defendant was "out of control," others were committed while she was capable of understanding the nature of her acts and their consequences. With respect to the wife, the judge found that
The case is a close one, but one which was for the judge to decide. The question before us is not what we or some other judge might have done faced with the same facts, but whether the judge who heard the evidence was clearly erroneous in deciding as she did. See Hano v. Hano, 5 Mass.App. 639, 640, 367 N.E.2d 1190 (1977). We hold that she was not.
The defendant contends that the judge erred in failing to appoint a guardian ad litem for her pursuant to G.L. c. 208, § 15. The docket entries in the record before us show that before trial a guardian ad litem was appointed pursuant to the provisions of G.L. c. 215, § 56A. That guardian ad litem was a qualified psychiatric social worker. She filed a report and testified at trial. Her report was thorough and complete as was her testimony. She...
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Rutherford v. Rutherford
...619 (La.1989) (spouse must prove the mental illness caused the conduct which constituted the grounds for divorce); Hoehn v. Hoehn, 11 Mass.App. 1000, 418 N.E.2d 648 (1981) (the question is whether the spouse was able to comprehend the nature and consequences of her In presenting this novel ......
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Adoption of Arthur, 92-P-848
...guardian to possess special credentials or knowledge concerning psychiatry, psychology, or social work. Contrast Hoehn v. Hoehn, 11 Mass.App.Ct. 1000, 418 N.E.2d 648 (1981), where the investigation involved an individual whose actions were committed while she was out of control and possibly......
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Matteson v. Matteson
...Mass. 366, 368, 416 N.E.2d 197 (1981). The judge's findings will not be set aside unless clearly erroneous. See Hoehn v. Hoehn, 11 Mass.App.Ct. 1000, 1001, 418 N.E.2d 648 (1981); Mass.R.Dom.Rel.P. 52(a). Our review of the record, which includes the transcript of informal hearings at which b......