Lawrence v. Lawrence

• Decision Date: 15 July 1964
• Docket Number: No. 1491,1491
• Citation: Lawrence v. Lawrence, 167 So.2d 414 (La. App. 1964)
• Parties: Shirley MILLER, wife of Harold E. LAWRENCE v. Harold E. LAWRENCE.
• Court: Court of Appeal of Louisiana

Page 414

167 So.2d 414

Shirley MILLER, wife of Harold E. LAWRENCE v.Harold E. LAWRENCE.

No. 1491.

Court of Appeal of Louisiana, Fourth Circuit.

July 15, 1964.

Rehearing Denied Oct. 7, 1964.

Louis A. Di Rosa, New Orleans, for plaintiff-appellee.

George O'Dowd, New Orleans, for defendant-appellant.

Before SAMUEL and HALL, JJ., and CHRIS T. BARNETTE, J. Pro Tem.

HALL, Judge.

Harold E. Lawrence prosecutes this appeal from a judgment dismissing his rule to reduce the amount of alimony previously fixed for maintenance and support of his minor children.

Mr. Lawrence and his former wife, Mrs. Shirley Miller Lawrence, were divorced on April 11, 1956.Following the divorce the custody of the four minor children of the marriage (Wayne, Gayle, Ronald and Richard) was awarded to their mother and alimony for the support of the four children was fixed by agreement of the parties at $188.00 per month.In July 1957 the alimony was increased to $195.00 per month.In March 1961 Mr. Lawrence filed a rule to reduce the amount of the alimony on the ground that one of the boys, Wayne, had entered the Navy.Following a hearing the District Judge entered judgment dismissing this rule which judgment was affirmed on appeal to this Court.SeeLa.App.145 So.2d 642.As a result the same amount of alimony formerly payable for the support of four children now became payable for the support of three.

In March of 1963 the alimony was reduced from $195.00 per month to $170.00 per month on account of a reduction in Mr. Lawrence's earnings.

In October 1963 a second son, Ronald, entered the Navy and on November 27, 1963 Mr. Lawrence filed a rule to reduce the amount of the alimony by one-third, or from $170.00 per month to $133.33 per month on the ground that there were now only two children, instead of three, requiring his support.This rule was dismissed by judgment rendered December 10, 1963 and Mr. Lawrence brought this appeal.

Appellant contends that the conditions are substantially the same as they existed when the alimony was fixed at $170.00 per month except that there is now one less child requiring his support.He relies heavily upon the decision of this Court in Wilmot v. Wilmot, La.App., 136 So.2d 806, and contends that there is nothing in the record which could or would warrant the Court in considering the support for any of the children differently than on a proportionate basis; he points out that the judgment dismissing his rule has the effect of increasing the alimony for the support of the two remaining children notwithstanding that Mrs. Lawrence has filed no rule for such increase; and contends that the Trial Judge acted arbitrarily and unreasonably in dismissing the rule.

The result reached by us in the Wilmotcase, supra, was occasioned by the fact that the transcript of the record on appeal contained no testimony whatever and it was impossible to determine the needs of the two children involved or either of them.Our decision in that case by no means stands for the proposition...