Texaco, Inc. v. LeFevre

• Decision Date: 30 October 1980
• Docket Number: No. 17765,17765
• Parties: TEXACO, INC., Appellant, v. Louis M. LeFEVRE, Appellee. (1st Dist.)
• Court: Texas Court of Appeals

Page 173

610 S.W.2d 173

TEXACO, INC., Appellant, v. Louis M. LeFEVRE, Appellee.

No. 17765.

Court of Civil Appeals of Texas, Houston (1st Dist.).

Oct. 30, 1980.

Rehearing Denied Nov. 27, 1980.

John D. White, Houston, for appellant.

Lieberman & Tratras, Richard P. Greenberg and Murray L. Lieberman, Houston, for appellee.

Before PEDEN, EVANS and WARREN, JJ.

WARREN, Justice.

This is an appeal from an order overruling a motion to dissolve a temporary injunction which prohibits Texaco from withholding sums from appellee's salary as ordered by an out-of-state judgment.

The question for our determination is whether the trial court should have dissolved an existing temporary injunction which was in conflict with a judgment entered by a federal district court of New York, in an interpleader action to which appellee and appellant were parties.

In March of 1974, Louis LeFevre filed suit for divorce against Lillian LeFevre in the Supreme Court of Nassau County, New York. At that time, both Mr. and Mrs. LeFevre were residents of Nassau County and Mr. LeFevre was an employee of Texaco, Inc. On September 19, the court dismissed the suit for divorce, but pursuant to New York law entered a judgment for alimony directing that appellee pay Lillian LeFevre $60.00 per week, all of her medical and dental expenses and the carrying charges on the marital residence occupied by her.

Thereafter, appellee moved to Texas, filed a suit for divorce and on July 23, 1976, a decree was entered in a Domestic Relations Court of Harris County, which dissolved the marriage, awarded the marital residence to Mrs. LeFevre and directed that she be responsible for the carrying charges on the home.

On October 17, 1978 an order was entered in a Supreme Court of Nassau County, New York granting to Mrs. LeFevre a money judgment for $20,901 against appellee for arrearage on the alimony payments ordered by the court in the September 19, 1974, decree. The October 17 order further directed that Texaco, Inc., appellee's employer, deduct the total of $155 per week from the wages of appellee until such time as the arrearage was satisfied.

After Texaco, Inc. had made deductions pursuant to the New York order of October 17, appellee on November 29 filed suit in a District Court of Harris County seeking a temporary injunction prohibiting Texaco from withholding any amounts from his salary as ordered by the New York decree. On December 22, a temporary injunction was granted enjoining Texaco from withholding any sum of money from appellee's salary to satisfy the New York judgment.

On January 8, 1979, Mrs. LeFevre obtained an order in the New York Supreme Court requiring Texaco to appear on January 22, and show cause why it should not be held in contempt for failing to obey the October 17, 1978, order which directed it to withhold sums from appellee's salary to satisfy the alimony arrearage.

On January 19, Texaco filed a sworn interpleader in a federal district court in the Eastern District of New York, stating that it was a disinterested stakeholder, that the corpus was being claimed by citizens of two different states and that it was in peril of being held in contempt because of conflicting orders issued by courts of two different states. Texaco prayed for an injunction prohibiting appellee and Mrs. LeFevre from instituting any further legal actions against Texaco and discharging Texaco from any liability for violation of either of the state court orders. The federal court granted a temporary restraining order as prayed for by Texaco and on November 9 a final judgment was entered in the interpleader action decreeing that: (1) the New York Supreme Court had in personam jurisdiction over the parties when it rendered the decree of September 19, 1974, ordering appellee to pay alimony; (2) the judgment of September 19, 1974 was entitled to full faith and credit; (3) the Court of Domestic Relations No. 5 of Harris County did not have in personam jurisdiction over the parties when it granted the divorce on July 23, 1976, and this order was null and void and was not entitled to full faith and credit as to any property rights existing between the parties, and (4) there was no proper basis for the District Court of Harris County to enjoin Texaco from complying with the October 17, 1978 order of the Supreme Court of New York, which mandated a deduction from the wages of appellee.

The order: (1) enjoined the District Court of Harris County from enforcing its contempt order prohibiting Texaco from withholding sums from appellee's wages, (2) discharged Texaco from any liability for claimed violations of the New York court order, (3) ordered a distribution of the money being held by Texaco and enjoined the parties from bringing other actions affecting the subject matter except in the state court of New York.

At the contempt hearing in our case the district court refused to hold Texaco in contempt but also refused to dissolve the injunction.

In two points of error appellant cont...