Peine v. Peine

• Decision Date: 12 September 2006
• Docket Number: No. WD 65017.,WD 65017.
• Citation: 200 S.W.3d 567
• Parties: Suanne PEINE, Respondent, v. Martin Steven PEINE, Appellant.
• Court: Missouri Court of Appeals

200 S.W.3d 567

Suanne PEINE, Respondent, v. Martin Steven PEINE, Appellant.

No. WD 65017.

Missouri Court of Appeals, Western District.

September 12, 2006.

COPYRIGHT MATERIAL OMITTED

Larry Vaughn Swall, II, Liberty, for appellant.

Kelly J. Ruark, Independence, for respondent.

Before BRECKENRIDGE, P.J., HOWARD and HOLLIGER, JJ.

PATRICIA BRECKENRIDGE, Presiding Judge.

Martin Peine appeals the trial court's judgment modifying the prior judgment that dissolved his marriage to Suanne Peine. In his first point on appeal, Mr. Peine asserts that the trial court erred in failing to abate his child support obligation from August 2003 through December 2004 because his daughter, Emily Peine, failed to comply with the notice requirements of section 452.340.5, RSMo 2000,¹ regarding eligibility to continued child support while attending college. In his second point, Mr Peine claims that the trial court erred in rebutting the presumed child support amount as unjust and inappropriate without making findings of fact. In his final point, Mr. Peine contends that the trial court erred in finding that there was no change in circumstances warranting a modification or termination of his obligation to pay maintenance. Because Emily failed to comply with the notice provisions of section 452.340.5 for the fall 2004 semester, she was not eligible to receive child support during that time period. Therefore, the trial court's judgment is reversed and remanded with instructions to credit Mr. Peine's future child support obligation with the amount of child support he paid during that time period. The judgment is affirmed in all other respects.

Factual and Procedural Background

The trial court dissolved the parties' marriage on February 25, 2000. The judgment dissolving their marriage awarded the parties joint legal and physical custody of the parties' two children, Jeffery, born November 22, 1982, and Emily, born June 18, 1985. The judgment awarded Ms. Peine physical custody, subject to the reasonable visitation rights of Mr. Peine.² The judgment also ordered Mr. Peine to pay $900 per month in child support and $500 per month in maintenance.

In May 2001, Jeffery graduated from high school. He enrolled at the University of Missouri-Columbia as a full-time student in August 2001, with an anticipated graduation date in May 2005. Emily graduated from high school in May 2003. She enrolled as a full-time student at Northwest Missouri State University in the fall semester of 2003.

On May 6, 2004, Mr. Peine filed a motion to modify the judgment dissolving his marriage. In his motion, Mr. Peine alleged a substantial and continuing change in circumstances sufficient to justify a change in child support. In particular, Mr. Peine claimed that he did not receive any enrollment information to show that either Jeffery or Emily were attending college or "successfully completed any term in an institution of higher education." In addition, he alleged that Ms. Peine's income had increased since the date of the judgment dissolving his marriage to such an extent that the presumed child support amount would deviate by more than twenty percent. Thus, Mr. Peine requested that the court abate his child support "for all months in which he has failed to be notified of the children's education status, progress or eligibility" and to set an amount of child support commensurate with Supreme Court guidelines. Moreover, based on an alleged change in circumstances regarding Ms. Peine, Mr. Peine sought to have his maintenance obligation terminated or modified to a "nominal amount."

Following the filing of Mr. Peine's motion to modify, in June 2004, Emily mailed Mr. Peine a transcript from Northwest Missouri State University, which indicated that she had completed thirteen of sixteen hours for the spring 2004 semester and that she began college in the fall semester of 2003. Prior to this time, neither Emily nor Jeffery provided any documentation to Mr. Peine regarding their college enrollment. In addition, on June 7, 2004, Ms Peine filed a counter-motion, which sought an increase in child support. In particular, Ms. Peine's motion alleged that an increase in child support was necessary because there had "been a tremendous increase in the cost of supporting" the children and that they were "both attending college, thereby increasing the cost of their support." On October 4, 2004, Emily sent Mr. Peine a copy of her class schedule for the fall 2004 semester.

The trial court held a hearing on the Peines' motions on December 1, 2004. Thereafter, the trial court entered its judgment modifying its prior judgment of dissolution. The judgment, entered on December 15, 2004, found that during the fall semester of 2002, Jeffery did not complete twelve hours of college credit and failed to provide Mr. Peine with the information as required by section 452.340 and, therefore, Jeffery was emancipated as of January 1, 2003. Regarding Emily, the judgment found that from January 1, 2004, to June 30, 2004, Emily had failed to provide Mr. Peine with the information required by section 452.340 to remain eligible for continued child support. Therefore, the judgment ordered that Mr. Peine's $900 "child support obligation shall abate for the months of January, February, March, April, May and June of 2004." As a result of the abatement, the judgment ordered that Mr. Peine "shall be given a credit toward his current child support obligation" in the amount of $5400. In addition, the trial court accepted Ms. Peine's Form 14 presumed child support amount of $812 but, nevertheless, rebutted that amount as being unjust and inappropriate and set Mr. Peine's child support amount at $1000 per month beginning December 1, 2004. Finally, the trial court's judgment ordered that Mr. Peine's maintenance obligation continue at the rate of $500 per month.

On January 4, 2005, Mr. Peine filed a motion for new trial or to set aside the judgment of modification to allow for the introduction of additional evidence. Specifically, Mr. Peine alleged that "to prevent prejudice to [him] and a resulting windfall to [Ms. Peine]" it was necessary to "consider evidence regarding the amount of financial aid received by [Emily] toward her college tuition." The trial court denied Mr. Peine's motion. This appeal by Mr. Peine followed.

Standard of Review

This court will review the judgment of the trial court under the standard of review applicable to any other court-tried case. Eckhoff v. Eckhoff, 71 S.W.3d 619, 622 (Mo.App. W.D.2002). The judgment will be affirmed unless it is not supported by substantial evidence, it is against the weight of the evidence, or it erroneously declares or applies the law. Murphy v. Carron, 536 S.W.2d 30, 32 (Mo. banc 1976).

Error in Child Support Regarding College Expenses for Fall 2004 Semester

In his first point on appeal, Mr. Peine asserts that the trial court erred in failing to abate his child support obligation from August 2003 through December 2004 because Emily failed to comply with the notice requirements of section 452.340.5 to remain eligible to receive child support. In particular, Mr. Peine contends that because Emily graduated from high school in May 2003, and she failed to provide notice to him of her enrollment at Northwest Missouri State University or her successful completion of at least twelve hours per semester, he was entitled to an abatement of his child support obligation for the fall 2003, spring 2004, and fall 2004 semesters.

In general, a parent's child support obligation terminates when the child on whose behalf the payments are made reaches the age of eighteen. Section 452.340.3; Windsor v. Windsor, 166 S.W.3d 623, 630 (Mo.App. W.D.2005). "[W]hen the child enrolls in an institution of vocational or higher education by the October following graduation from secondary school and if certain requirements are met, the child is eligible for a continuation of benefits." Ricklefs v. Ricklefs, 111 S.W.3d 541, 544 (Mo.App. W.D.2003) (citing Section 452.340.5). Section 452.340.5 provides, in relevant part:

If the child is enrolled in an institution of vocational or higher education not later than October first following graduation from a secondary school or completion of a graduation equivalence degree program and so long as the child enrolls for and completes at least twelve hours of credit each semester, not including the summer semester, at an institution of vocational or higher education and achieves grades sufficient to reenroll at such institution, the parental support obligation shall continue until the child completes his or her education, or until the child reaches the age of twenty-two, whichever first occurs. To remain eligible for such continued parental support, at the beginning of each semester the child shall submit to each parent a transcript or similar official document provided by the institution of vocational or higher education which includes the courses the child is enrolled in and has completed for each term, the grades and credits received for each such course, and an official document from the institution listing the courses which the child is enrolled in for the upcoming term and the number of credits for each such course.

In In re Marriage of Kohring, the Supreme Court interpreted section 452.340.5 to require "proof of eligibility for parental support on a term-by-term or semester-by-semester basis." 999 S.W.2d 228, 233 (Mo. banc 1999). Specifically, during the first semester of college following graduation from high school, eligibility for continued child support "may be established simply by proof of enrollment." Ricklefs, 111 S.W.3d at 544. In each subsequent semester, to remain eligible for child support, the student must provide both parents with a transcript or similar official document from the institution showing: "(1) the courses enrolled in; (2) the courses completed for each semester; (3) the grades and credits received for...