Court Opinion

ID: 9622905
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-22 06:24:56.768057+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T09:43:47.761044
License: Public Domain

TYSON, Judge
dissenting.
The majority’s opinion affirms the trial court’s order and holds: (1) defendant failed to assign error to any of the trial court’s conclusions of law and those conclusions are binding on appeal and (2) defendant’s assignments of error cannot be reviewed due to an incomplete transcript. I disagree and respectfully dissent.
I. Standard of Review
Normally, “[decisions regarding the amount of alimony are left to the sound discretion of the trial judge and will not be disturbed on appeal unless there has been a manifest abuse of that discretion.” Bookholt v. Bookholt, 136 N.C. App. 247, 249-50, 523 S.E.2d 729, 731 (1999) (citing Quick v. Quick, 305 N.C. 446, 453, 290 S.E.2d 653, 658 (1982)). “However, if there is no competent evidence to support a finding of fact, an exception to the finding must be sustained and a judgment or order predicated upon such erroneous findings must be reversed.” Bridges v. Bridges, 85 N.C. App. 524, 526, 355 S.E.2d 230, 231 (1987) (citing Morse v. Curtis, 276 N.C. 371, 172 S.E.2d 495 (1970)).
Also, defendant’s requests for admissions by plaintiff were “deemed admitted” by court order entered 11 February 2005 and are binding upon the trial court and here. Our Supreme Court has stated:
[A] judicial or solemn admission ... is a formal concession made by a party (usually through counsel) in the course of litigation for the purpose of withdrawing a particular fact from the realm of dispute .... Such an admission is not evidence, but rather removes the admitted fact from the field of evidence by formally conceding its existence. It is binding in every sense.
Woods v. Smith, 297 N.C. 363, 374, 255 S.E.2d 174, 181 (1979) (internal quotation omitted) (emphasis supplied).
II. Analysis
A. Calculation Errors
Defendant contends the trial court: (1) ignored undisputed and admitted evidence of plaintiff’s income and (2) failed to credit rental income plaintiff is receiving from their emancipated adult children. Conclusion of law numbered 2 states, “there has been a substantial *270change in material circumstances relating to the financial conditions and circumstances of the parties since the Prior Order was entered . . . July 16, 2004, which justifies modification of the Defendant’s alimony obligation.” As stated by the majority’s opinion, defendant does not challenge this conclusion of law, which concluded defendant’s motion had merit. Defendant challenges whether the trial court erred in calculating the amount to modify alimony.
Admitted and uncontradicted evidence shows: (1) plaintiffs income has increased from an imputed net income of $600.00 to an actual net income of $1,725.28 per month; (2) plaintiffs living expenses at the time of the prior order totaled $2,330.00 per month; (3) at the time of the prior order, plaintiff lived with' her minor son and adult daughter and was allocated one-half $219.50 per month of the mortgage payment on the former marital home; (4) plaintiff moved from North Carolina to South Carolina for work and was responsible for rental payments on her home of $850.00 per month; (5) plaintiff now lives with her adult son and adult daughter in a three bedroom home; (6) plaintiff receives rental contributions for rental and household expenses from both her adult son and adult daughter; (7) the prior order projected defendant’s gross income for 2004 to be between $65,000.00 and $70,000.00; (8) defendant’s 2004 income was $50,844.00; (9) defendant’s projected 2005 net income based on his 15 April 2005 pay stub is $3,841.00 per month; (10) the 15 April 2005 pay stub amount reflected an atypical and non-recurring gross incentive bonus received on 18 March 2005 in the amount of $1,988.00; and (11) defendant’s reasonable and necessary living expenses are $2,300.00 per month.
The prior order calculated defendant’s monthly alimony payment to be $2,200.00 based upon plaintiff’s reasonable and necessary living expenses of $2,330.00 minus her imputed net income of $600.00 to determine a shortfall of $1,730.00 per month. This determined shortfall was then adjusted to reflect income taxes and recalculated to be $2,200.00.
Based upon the admitted facts and taking plaintiff’s reasonable and necessary expenses as unchanged and subtracting her current net income, equates to a shortfall of $604.72 per month. Based on the same income tax rate used in the prior order, defendant’s alimony payment should be modified to $769.00 per month. The trial court’s determination that defendant’s monthly alimony payments should be reduced from $2,200.00 per month to $1,826.00 per month is not based on the admitted and binding evidence in the record to support the *271trial court’s finding of fact. Without competent evidence “an exception to the finding must be sustained and a judgment or order predicated upon such erroneous findings must be reversed.” Bridges, 85 N.C. App. at 526, 355 S.E.2d at 231 (citation omitted). Using the same analysis and calculations as in the prior order sought to be modified, defendant’s reduced obligation still remains more than $1,000.00 per month higher than plaintiff’s admissions allow.
B. Transcript
Under Rule 9(c)(2) of the North Carolina Rules of Appellate Procedure, a partial transcript is allowed “provided that when the verbatim transcript is designated to show the testimonial evidence, so much of the testimonial evidence must be designated as is necessary for an understanding of all errors assigned.” N.C.R. App P. 9(c)(2) (2007). The partial transcript in the record and briefs contain all necessary testimonial evidence needed to understand and rule upon the errors assigned.
III. Conclusion
Plaintiff admitted all facts in defendant’s request for admissions and these admitted facts were entered by order of the court. These admissions were no longer in “the realm of dispute” and are “binding in every sense.” Woods, 297 N.C. at 374, 255 S.E.2d at 181. The trial court miscalculated the required reduction of defendant’s alimony payments from $2,200.00 to $1,826.00 per month. I vote to remand to the trial court for correction of defendant’s income and a determination of plaintiff’s reasonable and necessary living expenses taking into account rental amounts she receives from her emancipated adult children who are living with her. I respectfully dissent.