Case Title: LeBlanc v. LeBlanc

Citation: 362 So. 2d 568

Docket Number: 

State: louisiana

Court: Louisiana Supreme Court

Date: 1978-09-05T00:00:00Z

Document:
362 So. 2d 568 (1978) Lawlest J. LeBLANC v. Audrey Weibelt, wife of Lawlest J. LeBLANC. No. 61800. Supreme Court of Louisiana. September 5, 1978. Arthur S. Mann, III, New Orleans, for defendant-applicant. Aubrey E. Pate, Kenner, for plaintiff-respondent. SANDERS, Chief Justice. The issue presented is a wife's entitlement to alimony after divorce. Mr. LeBlanc sued his wife for divorce on the ground that they lived separate and apart for two years without reconciliation. See LSA-R.S. 9:301. Mrs. LeBlanc filed a reconventional demand seeking alimony. The trial court granted the husband a divorce and, finding the wife free from fault, awarded her $125 per month alimony. The Court of Appeal reversed in part, denying her alimony. It found that her refusal to have sexual relations with her husband constituted fault. La.App., 354 So. 2d 704 (1978). We granted writs to review this judgment. La., 356 So. 2d 1005 (1978). Mr. LeBlanc testified that he left his wife because he was dissatisfied with married life, specifically with Mrs. LeBlanc's refusal to have sexual relations with him for two years, her many requests that he leave, and her telling him she no longer loved him and that he was not a good father to her children. *569 Mrs. LeBlanc denied telling her husband that she did not love him or that she asked him to leave. She further testified that generally he had good relations with his stepchildren. Neither counsel interrogated Mrs. Le-Blanc specifically about sexual relations with her husband. She, however, testified that the marriage was a happy one, with no special problems at the time of the separation. The wife's two daughters, who lived in the home during the marriage, corroborated their mother's testimony that they observed no friction or problems of a serious nature. When a husband obtains a divorce on the ground of voluntary separation, a wife is entitled to alimony only if she is free from fault and is without sufficient means for her support. LSA-C.C. Art. 160. Recently, in Pearce v. Pearce, La., 348 So. 2d 75 (1977), this Court set forth the applicable principles as follows: In Canter v. Koehring Company, La., 283 So. 2d 716 (1973), this Court held: In his reasons for judgment, the trial judge stated: At trial, the husband's testimony concerning the denial of sexual relations *570 was general in nature. It was contradicted by the testimony of his wife and her daughters that the marriage was a normal one with no special problems. In enumerating his reasons for leaving the domicile in his divorce petition, the husband made no reference to sexual rejection. It is obvious that the factual findings here depend largely upon the credibility of witnesses. We find no adequate basis in the record to disturb the finding of the trial judge that the wife was free from fault that would disqualify her from alimony. The evidence also supports the trial judge's alimony award of $125 per month. For the reasons assigned, the judgment of the Court of Appeal denying the wife alimony is reversed and set aside, and the judgment of the district court awarding her alimony is reinstated and made the judgment of this Court.