IN RE MARRIAGE OF REEDER v. Johnson

• Decision Date: 23 March 2010
• Docket Number: No. 1 CA-CV 09-0247.,1 CA-CV 09-0247.
• Citation: 227 P.3d 492
• Parties: In re the MARRIAGE OF Paula R. REEDER, Petitioner/Appellee, v. Edward H. JOHNSON, Respondent/Appellant.
• Court: Arizona Court of Appeals

227 P.3d 492

In re the MARRIAGE OF Paula R. REEDER, Petitioner/Appellee, v. Edward H. JOHNSON, Respondent/Appellant.

No. 1 CA-CV 09-0247.

Court of Appeals of Arizona, Division 1, Department B.

March 23, 2010.

Joseph C. Richter, PC By Joseph C. Richter, Scottsdale, Attorney for Petitioner/Appellee.

S. Alan Cook, PC By S. Alan Cook, Phoenix, Attorney for Respondent/Appellant.

OPINION

BARKER, Judge.

¶ 1 Respondent/Appellant Edward Johnson appeals from the trial court's denial of his motion for new trial and challenges the court's approval of an Arizona Rule of Family Law Procedure 69 ("Rule 69") settlement agreement in a marriage dissolution action. For the following reasons, we reverse and remand to the family court for proceedings consistent with this opinion.

Facts and Procedural Background

¶ 2 Johnson and Paula Reeder were married on May 19, 1990. Reeder filed a petition for dissolution of their marriage on December 21, 2007. Johnson and Reeder did not have children during their marriage. On April 23, 2008, Johnson and Reeder attended mediation with Barry Brody acting as a paid, private mediator. Brody was also on the superior court's approved list to serve as a judge pro tem at the time the mediation took place, but he had not been assigned by the court to act on this particular case. The parties reached a settlement and then agreed to use Brody as a judge pro tem to put a Rule 69 agreement on the record, using a tape recorder as the recording device.¹ Reeder requested that the court vacate the trial date because of the settlement. She then filed a notice of lodging decree of dissolution of marriage on August 5, 2008.

¶ 3 On August 25, Johnson filed an objection to the notice of lodging and a motion to set aside the Rule 69 agreement. Johnson argued that the division of property was not equitable and the decree did not conform to the Rule 69 agreement. The court heard oral argument then overruled Johnson's objections and signed the decree. The court stated: "If this challenge to the Rule 69 Agreement were sufficient, there really would not be a Rule 69 Agreement that was much worth the paper it was printed on." "As to Respondent's claim for lack of understanding, Mr. Brody, acting as a Judge Pro Tem by agreement of the parties, explained the terms of the agreement very clearly. It was not a very complicated agreement, and Respondent answered affirmatively to all the questions."

¶ 4 Johnson filed a motion for new trial and motion to vacate the decree on October 23, 2008. That motion alleged that there was no valid Rule 69 agreement because the legal requisites were not met. It argued that the parties utilized Brody's services as a mediator and "counsel has looked in the Court's file in this cause and there is no order in the file appointing Barry Brody as a judge pro tempore in this case." The motion also set forth that Johnson never signed a settlement agreement or consent decree. The trial court denied Johnson's motion for new trial.

¶ 5 Johnson filed a timely notice of appeal. We have jurisdiction pursuant to Arizona Revised Statutes ("A.R.S.") sections 12-2101(C), (F)(1) (2003).

Discussion

¶ 6 We review de novo the interpretation of rules of procedure. State v. Williams, 209 Ariz. 228, 235, ¶ 30, 99 P.3d 43, 50 (App.2004). "We are not constrained by the legal conclusions from facts found or inferred in the judgment of the trial court nor by findings of the trial court in questions of law or mixed questions of law and fact." Enter. Leasing Co. of Phoenix v. Ehmke, 197 Ariz. 144, 148, ¶ 11, 3 P.3d 1064, 1068 (App.1999).

1. The Applicability of Rule 69

¶ 7 Rules of procedure, including the family court rules, are interpreted according to the principles of statutory interpretation. Ariz. Dep't of Revenue. v. Superior Court, 189 Ariz. 49, 52, 938 P.2d 98, 101 (App.1997). In statutory interpretation, the primary goal "is to find and give effect to legislative intent." Mathews ex rel. Mathews v. Life Care Ctrs. of Am., Inc., 217 Ariz. 606, 608, ¶ 6, 177 P.3d 867, 869 (App.2008). The plain language of the rule is the best indicator of that intent. Id. If the plain language is clear and unambiguous then we give it effect and do not use other methods of statutory interpretation. Id. Where the rule is ambiguous, we consider the rule's "context, subject matter, historical background, effects and consequences, and spirit and purpose." Id. (quoting State v. Ross, 214 Ariz. 280, 283 ¶ 22, 151 P.3d 1261, 1264 (App.2007)).

¶ 8 Rule 69 provides:

Agreements between the parties shall be binding if they are in writing or if the agreements are made or confirmed on the record before a judge, commissioner, judge pro tempore, court reporter, or other person authorized by local rule or Administrative Order to accept such agreements.

Ariz. R. Fam. L.P. 69. The rule is clear in defining two types of agreements in family law matters that are binding: (1) written agreements between the parties, and (2) agreements made or confirmed on the record before a person authorized to accept such agreements, including a judge pro tempore or other person authorized by local rule. Id. Here, Reeder asserts that the agreement is valid because it was made on the record before a judge pro tem. We address what constitutes "on the record before a . . . judge pro tem" or "other person authorized by local rule or Administrative Order to accept such agreements."

a. "On the Record" Under Rule 69

¶ 9 Rule 69 is adapted from, yet not identical to, Arizona Rule of Civil Procedure 80(d). Id. cmt. Rule 80(d) states that "no agreement or consent between parties or attorneys in any matter is binding if disputed, unless it is in writing, or made orally in open court, and entered in the minutes." Ariz. R. Civ. P. 80(d). Normally, we would look to case law under Rule 80(d) to help us with the interpretation of Rule 69. See Ariz. R. Fam. L.P. 1 cmt. ("Wherever the language in these rules is substantially the same as the language in other statewide rules, the case law interpreting that language will apply to these rules."). Although the policy behind both rules is the same, the language in Rule 69 is substantially different from that in Rule 80(d). Canyon Contracting Co. v. Tohono O'Odham Housing Auth., 172 Ariz. 389, 393, 837 P.2d 750, 754 (App.1992) ("The policy behind Rule 80(d) is to relieve the trial court from having to resolve factual disputes as to the existence and terms of an alleged settlement agreement."). If not in writing, Rule 80(d) requires that the agreement be "made orally in open court, and entered in the minutes." In contrast, Rule 69 only requires that the agreement be "on the record" before one of the enumerated people. The committee comment to Rule 69 helps to clarify the meaning of "on the record." It states:

A proceeding or agreement is "on the record" if it is conducted or memorialized by a court reporter in accordance with A.R.S. §§ 12-221 to 12-225, or if recorded by any recording device authorized by law. A.R.S. § 38-424 currently authorizes the use of "tape recorders or other recording devices in lieu of reporters or stenographers."

Ariz. R. Fam. L.P. 69 cmt. Under Rule 69, in contrast to Rule 80(d), "on the record" does not mean that the agreement must be made orally in open court. The agreement merely must be memorialized by an authorized recording device, such as the circumstances here. Therefore, we find that the agreement between Reeder and Johnson was "on the record" for purposes of Rule 69.

b. Authority to Accept a Rule 69 Agreement

¶ 10 We next determine if Brody was authorized to accept the agreement either as judge pro tem or mediator. The parties do not dispute that Brody was acting as a mediator until they agreed that he would act as judge pro tem for purposes of putting a Rule 69 agreement on the record. For this reason, we discuss whether Brody was an authorized person under Rule 69 in either capacity.

i. Judge Pro Tempore

¶ 11 A judge pro tem "shall have all the judicial powers of a regular elected judge of the court to which the person is appointed." Ariz. Const. art. 6, § 31. The administrative order appointing Brody as judge pro tem states:

IT IS ORDERED, effective July 1, 2007, designating the attached list of attorneys as Judges Pro Tempore of this Court for the period of July 1, 2007 through June 30, 2008, to hear and decide matters assigned to them as Judges Pro Tempore by the Presiding Judge, by any departmental presiding judges, or by the Judicial Branch Administrator without further written notice.

In re the Appointment of Attorneys as Judges Pro Tempore, Maricopa County Super. Ct. Admin. Order No. 2007-086 (June 25, 2007) (hereinafter "Admin. Order") (emphasis added). Thus, a judge pro tem has the same powers as a regular elected judge to decide those matters assigned to him by the presiding judge, departmental presiding judge, or the judicial branch administrator. "Mediation" is defined as a "voluntary confidential process in which parties enter into. . . private discussions with a neutral third party to resolve the dispute. Mediation can be conducted by a conciliation court counselor, a mediator assigned by the court from a court roster of mediators, or a private mediator retained by the parties." Ariz. R. Fam. L.P. 66(B)(4). Here, Brody was acting as a paid private mediator — he was not appointed by the court to serve in that role.

¶ 12 Neither party suggests that Brody was assigned to act as a judge pro tem in the mediation, only that the parties agreed he could act as judge pro tem at the conclusion of the mediation. However, parties cannot stipulate to assign a judge pro tem to their case. One can only imagine the judicial chaos that would occur if parties, on their own, could "assign" a judge pro tem to a matter already presided over by a superior court judge. To serve as a judge pro tem in this matter, Brody would have to have been assigned to it by the presiding judge,...