Roalson v. Chaney, 68526

• Decision Date: 15 June 1983
• Docket Number: No. 68526,68526
• Citation: 334 N.W.2d 754
• Parties: Richard B. ROALSON, Appellant, v. C.C. CHANEY, Appellee.
• Court: Iowa Supreme Court

Page 754

334 N.W.2d 754

Richard B. ROALSON, Appellant, v. C.C. CHANEY, Appellee.

No. 68526.

Supreme Court of Iowa.

June 15, 1983.

August H. Luthens, Des Moines, for appellant.

William J. Pattinson of Curtis, Finn & Pattinson, Ames, for appellee.

Considered by UHLENHOPP, P.J., and HARRIS, McCORMICK, LARSON and CARTER, JJ.

McCORMICK, Justice.

This case involves an action for alleged intentional interference with marital conciliation and intentional infliction of emotional distress. The questions are whether this court will recognize a new tort for "interference with marital conciliation" and whether the record is sufficient to withstand summary judgment on the emotional distress claim. In entering summary judgment for defendant, the trial court held that interference with conciliation is not actionable and that the record does not show a genuine issue of material fact on the emotional distress claim. We affirm.

Principles governing summary judgment are reviewed in Enochs v. City of Des Moines, 314 N.W.2d 378, 379-80 (Iowa 1982). In accordance with these principles, we recite the evidence in its light most favorable to plaintiff, the party against whom the motion was made.

Plaintiff Richard B. Roalson and Donna Roalson were married in October 1979. Each had previously been married. They lived in Ames in a mobile home brought into the marriage by Donna. In January 1981 Donna went to Colorado to be with her terminally ill stepfather. While she was there she talked to her mother about divorcing Richard. When Donna returned to Iowa she told Richard she wanted a divorce and asked him to leave the home. He persuaded her to reconsider her decision, but a couple of days later she told him it was final. She agreed Richard could stay in the mobile home until he found a suitable apartment. He remained in the home until May 1st.

Defendant C.C. Chaney, an 80-year-old cousin of Donna's stepfather, learned of Donna's divorce plans from Donna's mother. On approximately February 20, 1981, Chaney called Donna at her place of employment and asked her if she was getting divorced. Donna confirmed that she was. In the succeeding weeks Chaney called Donna on several occasions and sent her cards and letters. Donna traveled to Colorado in March and April at Chaney's expense to get better acquainted with him. During the March visit, Chaney asked Donna to consider marrying him to provide him companionship in exchange for financial security. In May and August Chaney's attorney prepared proposed antenuptial agreements, but they were not executed, and the record does not disclose that the matter was pursued.

Donna's dissolution petition was filed March 3, 1981. From then until May 1st when Richard left the home, Richard was present on several occasions when Chaney called Donna. In addition, he saw several of the cards and letters Chaney sent her. By reading her mail, Richard learned Chaney had sent money to Donna and furnished a car to her on one of her Colorado trips. Donna told Richard that Chaney was a wealthy man, and on one occasion she told him Chaney was putting a "hard sell" on her to marry him.

On May 22, 1981, Richard simultaneously filed an application for appointment of a conciliator in the dissolution case and the petition in the present action. He accused Chaney in the tort petition of intentionally interfering with marital conciliation and with intentionally inflicting emotional distress on him. Defendant denied the material allegations of the petition and subsequently filed a motion for summary judgment. The motion was submitted to the court on plaintiff's deposition, affidavits by Donna and Chaney, answers to interrogatories by Chaney, and various exhibits.

In sustaining the motion on the interference with conciliation claim, the trial court characterized it as a "repackaged" alienation of affections action. On the emotional distress claim, the court found the evidence insufficient to show a genuine issue of material fact on essential elements of the cause of action. Richard contends the court erred in these findings and in the resulting holding.

I. Interference with conciliation. Mandatory conciliation procedures are available to parties in a dissolution action upon application by one of them. See Iowa Code § 598.16 (1983). Nothing in the language of the statute purports to give one of the spouses an independent tort action against a third person for attempting to influence the other spouse not to reconcile. Richard contends, however, that such an action should be recognized at common law to give the conciliation procedure an opportunity to work.

The arguments for and against recognizing an independent tort action for damages for interference with conciliation are similar to the arguments for and against recognizing a tort action for alienation of affections. The gist of Richard's theory is that a tort action for...