Title: Tyler v. Tyler

State: kansas

Issuer: Kansas Supreme Court

Document:

203 Kan. 565 (1969)
455 P.2d 538
NANCY PERRY TYLER, Appellee,
v.
DANIEL WALDO TYLER, Appellant.
No. 45,361

Supreme Court of Kansas.
Opinion filed June 14, 1969.
Warren W. Shaw, of Topeka, argued the cause, and Hugh H. Kreamer, of Olathe, and George Miskovsky and John Embry, both of Oklahoma City, Okla., were with him on the brief for the appellant.
Willard B. Thompson, of Wichita, argued the cause, and Hugo T. Wedell, Wayne Coulson, Paul R. Kitch, Dale M. Stucky, Donald R. Newkirk, Gerrit H. Wormhoudt, Philip Kassebaum, John E. Rees, Robert T. Cornwell, David W. Buxton, John T. Conlee, John Prather, Richard I. Stephenson, and Douglas D. Johnson, all of Wichita, and John J. Gardner, of Olathe, were with him on the brief for the appellee.
The opinion of the court was delivered by
HARMAN, C.:
This appeal is from a post-divorce allowance of *566 increased child support payments together with attorney fees for obtaining the increase.
The appellee, Nancy Perry Shaw, formerly Nancy Perry Tyler, and the appellant, Daniel Waldo Tyler, who were married in 1953, were divorced October 21, 1959, in the district court of Johnson county, Kansas. They were the parents of two children, Frank Waldo and Lisa, then aged four and two years, respectively. The divorce decree approved a property settlement agreement entered into by the parties and, subject to further order of the court, ordered support money to be paid by appellant in accord with the agreement, that is, the sum of $150.00 per month for each child; when each child entered high school the payments were to be $200.00 per month and when each child entered college the monthly payments were to be increased to $250.00; additionally appellant was to pay medical and dental expenses for each child in excess of $200.00 annually, and tuition, room and board for a child attending a private school or a college located outside the greater Kansas City area. The divorce decree approved an irrevocable trust agreement established by appellant for the benefit of the children which was provided for in the property settlement agreement, and it also recited the trial court retained jurisdiction of the matter of support of the children during the minority of each. The property settlement agreement also provided that appellee receive the sum of $160,000 in cash, wedding gifts and, as alimony, the sum of $1,250 per month during her lifetime or until remarried.
Appellee remarried in December, 1961. She and the two children, and another child born as a result of her marriage to Mr. Shaw, have since resided in Wichita. Appellant has also remarried, as a result of which he has a natural born child and two adopted children.
February 16, 1967, appellee filed her application in the trial court for increased monthly child support payments to be made by appellant, requesting the sum of $500.00 for each child. Appellant resisted this application. The trial court heard evidence and on October 30, 1967, ordered appellant to pay $400.00 per month support for each child, and also, as part of the costs, the sum of $2,000 for attorney fees for appellee's counsel. Appeal is from these orders.
The trial court made findings of fact including the following:
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Additionally, the trial court made findings as to amounts of capital expenditures made by appellee for the benefit of her family, living expenses allocable to each member thereof, and specifically found appellee had expended for the support and maintenance of Frank and Lisa the sum of $523.85 each per month, and it made the following conclusions of law:
Appellant contends the trial court abused its discretion in ordering him to pay $250.00 per month additional support money without requiring appellee first to resort to the trust fund for such increase. He argues the trust fund was established to provide support for the children and was, under its terms, available for their support during their minority. This contention requires a closer look at the trust agreement. Funds came into it by reason of the following proviso in the parties' property settlement agreement:
The trust agreement itself first recited that appellant, the settlor, had deposited with the trustee, The Commerce Trust Company, the sum of $100.00 to be held by it under the terms of the agreement, *571 along with all other property coming into the trust estate. In pertinent part the trust agreement then provided:
*572 Further provisions directed fractional parts of the principal of each share to be paid each beneficiary upon attainment of age twenty-five, thirty, and thirty-five years, with final distribution and termination of the trust at age forty. Provision was also made for disposition of the fund in event of death of either beneficiary. The trustee was authorized in its discretion to invade the principal if deemed necessary to carry out the provisions of the trust and was directed "to be liberal in its exercise of said power." The trust agreement was made irrevocable as to appellant.
Appellant directs particular attention to the first sentence in subparagraph B(2) of the instrument directing that during the minority of each beneficiary the trustee shall pay over such amount of income as it may deem necessary for the maintenance and support of such beneficiary "taking into consideration any other resources available to said beneficiary of which the trustee has actual knowledge." He argues the language of the trust agreement explicitly and clearly shows it was created to provide support for the children during their minority and that it is inequitable and an abuse of discretion on the part of the trial court to require him to pay additional support money rather than look to the trust fund for such increase. He says that parties can by contract provide for the discharge of their obligation for support of their minor children.
Appellant's position cannot be sustained.
Any provision in a separation agreement entered into by the parties for the custody, support or education of their minor children remains subject to the control of the district court (K.S.A. 1968 Supp. 60-1610 [d]). Subsequent to the decree in a divorce action, the district court, under K.S.A. 1968 Supp. 60-1610 (a), has a continuing discretion to modify or change an order therein made for support of minor children when facts and circumstances are shown which make such change or modification proper. These statutes accord with long prevailing doctrine that parents cannot, by agreement between themselves, deprive the courts of their inherent power to make such provision for the support of their minor children as the latter's welfare may require. Upon appeal a ruling of the district court increasing child support will not be disturbed unless there is a clear showing of abuse of discretion (Grunder v. Grunder, 186 Kan. 766, 352 P.2d 1067; Herzmark v. Herzmark, 199 Kan. 48, 427 P.2d 465). In Allison v. Allison, 188 Kan. 593, 363 P.2d 795, the holding was:
The evidence before the trial court here consisted of the testimony of appellee, an officer of the trustee and a medical witness, and documents reflecting the parties' assets, expenses and income. Appellee testified and the trial court found as a fact that the trust was established chiefly to provide the children with estates of their own and not to provide for their current support (finding No. 23). Appellee testified as to motives and considerations prompting establishment of the trust fund, at her insistence and as a part of her contractual adjustment with appellant, so as to provide an inheritance for the children. No complaint is made here on the reception of this testimony, which apparently was uncontradicted, and it is entitled to its full import on the side of the trial court's ruling. The conclusion the trust fund was intended primarily to insure an inheritance is further buttressed by the fact that under the provisions of the trust agreement no funds were to come into it (except the nominal deposit of $100) until one of three events occurred: Appellee's death, her remarriage, or the attainment by the youngest child of the age of twenty-one years; hence, so long as appellee remained alive and single there was nothing in the trust fund from which support could be provided for either child during its minority. By her action, and at cost to herself, appellee has so interpreted the agreement. And appellant has always made the support money payments separately and apart from the trust fund, instead of using the optional method mentioned in subparagraph B(1) of the trust indenture. On the question of administration of the fund, the trust officer did testify the trustee would take into consideration any court order for support money for the children but it is manifest the trial court correctly ruled it could not make a binding order on the trustee with respect to its discretionary distribution. The trust officer's testimony that the trustee in determining whether to make distribution would not consider appellant's resources was purely a legal conclusion which the trial court was at liberty to disregard in reaching its decision. Noteworthy also is the fact that, at appellee's instance, a separate escrow account was required and established, in order to provide her security for appellant's performance of his obligations arising from the property settlement agreement (finding *574 No. 18). Although, being immaterial here, the terms of the escrow agreement are not included in the record before us, evidently, upon appellee's remarriage, appellant withdrew funds from the escrow account no longer necessary to secure alimony payments and placed them in the trust fund.
If appellant's interpretation of the purpose of the trust fund were correct, it would have been easy to have inserted in the agreement plain language to that effect. A simple statement as to purpose and a simple covenant that the funds therein must first be resorted to before any increase could be sought from appellant's resources would have sufficed. This would have been in sharp contrast to the broad language actually used  that in making any distribution during minority the trustee should take into account "any other resources" available.
Appellant also argues the result of the trial court's ruling is to compel him to create an estate out of his property to support minor children beyond their minority, which is prohibited. However, if that could be construed to be the effect of the order, we know of no rule making it invalid when based on an agreement entered into by the parent whose property is so taken (see Hayn v. Hayn, 162 Kan. 189, 175 P.2d 127).
Here, the trial court made its approval of the property settlement agreement (of which the trust indenture was a part) and its initial allowance of support money subject to further order of the court and expressly retained jurisdiction for that purpose. The trial court had evidence as to the financial and social position of the parties and made specific factual findings as to expenses of the children. Appellant does not seriously contend the amount allowed was excessive either as to need or as to his ability to pay. The court found that appellee was making substantial contributions from her own resources toward the children's support. It also made factual findings as to the intent of the parties in establishing the trust fund which findings we may not ignore. In making its order the court was primarily concerned with the welfare of the two children as shown by the evidence. Everything considered, we cannot say the court's order was so inequitable as to amount to abuse of discretion.
The trial court also made an allowance of attorney fees for appellee's counsel. In Herzmark v. Herzmark, supra, it was pointed out that K.S.A. 1968 Supp. 60-1610 (f) vests a trial court with wide discretion in awarding attorney fees in proceedings for the modification *575 of an order respecting the care and support of minor children. The allowance here was substantiated by evidence as to time actually spent and services rendered, and we find it was properly within the sound discretion of the trial court.
The judgment is affirmed.
APPROVED BY THE COURT.
FONTRON, J., dissents.