Jones v. Jones

• Decision Date: 10 April 1990
• Docket Number: No. 17768,17768
• Citation: 790 P.2d 914,117 Idaho 621
• Parties: Martina Zenovia JONES, Plaintiff-Respondent, v. Fred JONES, Defendant-Appellant.
• Court: Idaho Supreme Court

Page 914

790 P.2d 914

117 Idaho 621

Martina Zenovia JONES, Plaintiff-Respondent, v. Fred JONES, Defendant-Appellant.

No. 17768.

Supreme Court of Idaho.

April 10, 1990.

[117 Idaho 622] E. Lee Schlender, Hailey, for defendant-appellant.

Michael H. Felton, Buhl, for plaintiff-respondent.

ON DENIAL OF REHEARING

McDEVITT, Justice.

Fred and Martina Jones were married in Peru on March 21, 1980. Martina Jones entered the United States as a resident alien, along with two Peruvian children, Marta and Weston, adopted by the parties. One other child, Eleanor, was later born to the parties in the United States.

Fred Jones (appellant) filed for divorce in Minidoka County on February 19, 1986. Martina Jones (respondent) followed suit by filing an identical action in Twin Falls County on February 25, 1986. The Twin Falls County case was to be heard by Judge Edwards. Fred Jones filed a motion to dismiss the Twin Falls County case on March 12, 1986, which was taken under advisement on March 20, pending disposition of Martina Jones's motion for change of venue. On April 2, 1986, venue of the Minidoka County case was changed to Twin Falls, and on April 7, Martina Jones moved to consolidate the two cases. On the same day, Fred Jones moved to disqualify Judge Edwards from both cases, pursuant to I.R.C.P. 40(d)(1).

On April 15, 1986, Judge Edwards denied Fred Jones's motion to dismiss the Twin Falls case, and also denied the motion to disqualify himself from the Twin Falls case, on the ground that "a contested matter (the motion to dismiss) had been previously argued to and submitted to the Court." He declined to rule on the motion to consolidate however, as there was still a motion to disqualify pending in the Minidoka County case.

On April 16, 1986, the cases were consolidated in Twin Falls. Judge Edwards was appointed presiding magistrate.

Divorce was granted on the grounds of irreconcilable differences. Temporary custody of the children during the pendency of the trial was first awarded to Martina Jones, but that order was modified when a purported threat made in a letter by Mrs. Jones against the children caused the court to transfer temporary custody to Fred Jones, with supervised visiting rights granted to Martina Jones. Later, the court was convinced, in part by contested expert testimony, that Martina Jones did not pose a danger to the children, and transferred primary custody back to her.

It was stipulated by the parties that there were no community property assets, and the trial court found that Martina Jones had no separate property. Fred Jones was assigned all community property debts, costs of litigation, including fees incurred from translating documents in evidence from Spanish to English, and was required to pay child support and house payments on the Twin Falls home where Martina Jones resides with the children.

The magistrate's ruling was affirmed by the District Court of the Fifth Judicial District. Fred Jones challenges the lower court's holding on several grounds. He appeals the trial court's ruling denying a motion to disqualify the magistrate and failure to dismiss the second, identical action filed by Martina Jones in Twin Falls County. He also contests awards of child support and primary physical custody, costs and debts assigned to him, a contempt order against him for failure to pay child support, and the admission of expert testimony.

I. Motion to dismiss.

Fred Jones contends that the Magistrate Court erred in denying his motion to dismiss the Twin Falls case. He argues that dismissal was mandated by the fact that the Minidoka County case was filed first, and the later Twin Falls case was in all respects identical to the existing action in Minidoka County. Fred Jones concedes that the question of whether to dismiss a case is discretionary, but asserts that such discretionary acts must set forth the factors taken into account and reasoning employed in reaching the decision.

It is true that "important discretionary acts should not be shrouded in speculation." Bailey v. Bailey, 107 Idaho 324, 329, 689 P.2d 216, 221 (Ct.App.1984). In this case, however, the magistrate, Judge Edwards, ruled against the motion to dismiss in favor of the possibility of consolidation. Since there was a motion to disqualify the magistrate still pending in the Minidoka County case, Judge Edwards declined to make a ruling on consolidation, passing that decision on to the Court Administrator for Twin Falls County. Judge Hurlbutt entered an order consolidating the two cases in Twin Falls. The reason Judge Hurlbutt gave for the consolidation was that "[a] review of the files reflects that there exists a complete unity of parties, issues, and requested relief in the two cases." Order of Consolidation and Further Appointment, April 16, 1986.

The above stated reason is sufficient to allow review of an exercise of discretion. Although a court must elucidate its reasons for its discretionary actions, there is no rule that where alternative actions exist a court must choose one and set forth its reasons for not choosing other alternatives. In this case, Judge Edwards considered consolidation a preferable alternative, but declined to make the ruling himself due to the pending motion for disqualification. Instead, Judge Hurlbutt granted the motion to consolidate and stated the reasons therefore. There is nothing to indicate an abuse of discretion. ¹

II. I.R.C.P. 40(d)(1) motion to disqualify.

Fred Jones argues that Judge Edwards improperly heard the consolidated cases in Twin Falls after a motion to disqualify him in both cases was filed. Mr. Jones urges that the denial of the motion to disqualify in Twin Falls was improper, and that even if Judge Edwards was not properly disqualified in the Twin Falls case, the motion to disqualify in Minidoka County should have prevented him from hearing the consolidated cases.

I.R.C.P. 40(d)(1), as it existed at the time the motion to disqualify was filed in 1986, provided:

[A]ny party may disqualify one (1) judge, without cause, by filing a motion of disqualification.... Such motion must be made not later than 5 days after service of a notice setting the action for trial, pre-trial, or hearing on the first contested motion, and must be made before any contested proceeding in such action has been submitted for decision to the judge; ....

I.R.C.P. 40(d)(1).

Fred Jones argued a motion to dismiss the Twin Falls County case on March 12, 1986. The motion to disqualify Judge Edwards was made on April 7, 1986, and was properly denied because it was filed after the first contested proceeding was submitted to the court.

The second aspect to this issue is whether a concurrent motion in the Minidoka County case could prevent Judge Edwards from hearing the two cases once they were consolidated.

In general, the consolidation of two cases does not have the effect of merging the two cases into a single action. Rather, "consolidation is permitted as a matter of convenience and economy in administration, but does not merge the suits into a single cause, or change the rights of the parties...." Johnson v. Manhattan Ry., 289 U.S. 479, 496-98, 53 S.Ct. 721, 727-28, 77 L.Ed. 1331 (1933). Thus, where a judge cannot be disqualified in one case which is later consolidated with another, the party who filed the first motion to disqualify could again seek disqualification as to the second case. If the second motion for disqualification was proper, the judge could be prevented from hearing the consolidated version of both cases.

There is an exception to this general proposition under the facts of this case. Fred Jones sought to disqualify Judge Edwards in a proceeding for the dissolution of marriage in Twin Falls. That motion failed because it came after a contested matter was presented to the court. Jones argues that he should now be permitted to disqualify the same judge, hearing the same dissolution of marriage case in Minidoka County. We decline to read the statute to permit Mr. Jones to do indirectly what he could not do directly. Therefore, we hold that under circumstances such as this, where the consolidated cases are absolutely identical and are in fact the same action, a failed motion to disqualify the judge in one case will serve as the only bite of the apple of disqualification without cause. After failing to timely disqualify Judge Edwards in the Twin Falls County divorce case, Fred Jones cannot subsequently disqualify Judge Edwards in the same case filed in another county.

III. Award of primary physical custody of the children and child support.

Fred Jones alleges that the award of primary physical custody of the children of the marriage to Martina Jones was an abuse of the trial court's discretion. He argues that there is ample evidence in the record that custody with himself, rather than Martina Jones, would be in the best interests of the children. He also contests the amount of child support awarded to Martina Jones. Both of these issues are governed by the same rule.

"Error is not assumed on appeal, but must be affirmatively shown by the party assigning it." Weaver v. Sibbett, 87 Idaho 387, 392-93, 393 P.2d 601, 604 (1964). It is the responsibility of the appellant to include exhibits and transcripts of hearings in the record before the appellate court. Dawson v. Eldredge, 89 Idaho 402, 405 P.2d 754 (1965). Where the record before the appellate court does not contain the evidence taken into account by the lower court, "we must necessarily presume that the evidence justifies the decision and that the findings are supported by substantial evidence." Nash v. Hope Silver Lead Mines, 79 Idaho 137, 142, 314 P.2d 681, 683 (1957).

In this case, Fred Jones has not provided this Court with a transcript of the hearing concerning the award of child custody and child support. Under the well settled law quoted above, we cannot presume that the trial court's decision was invalid in the absence...