Court Opinion

ID: 9695767
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-25 18:28:57.938441+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T18:20:16.256381
License: Public Domain

HOFFMAN, Judge,
dissenting:
I dissent.
Once again, the master has recommended a divorce in favor of the husband-plaintiff. The master credited the husband, rejected the wife-defendant’s account, and recommended a divorce. The lower court, after reviewing the evidence, sustained the exceptions and dismissed the complaint. On that basis, the court, which, of course, had no opportunity to see the witnesses or to assess their credibility, substituted its own judgment for that of the master.
*265Once again, this Court affirms. We are rightly wary of substituting our judgment for that of a lower court in those instances in which it has a particular area of expertise. However, in this case, the lower court substituted its judgment for that of the master when the relevant issue was properly resolved by the factfinder in the first instance. Therefore, I renew my objection to overturning a master’s finding after the master has had an opportunity to resolve issues of credibility. Coxe v. Coxe, 246 Pa.Super. 231, 369 A.2d 1297 (1976) (Dissenting Opinion by HOFFMAN, J.); Dougherty v. Dougherty, 235 Pa.Super. 122, 339 A.2d 81 (1975); Gehris v. Gehris, 233 Pa.Super. 144, 334 A.2d 753 (1975).
I would reverse, dismiss the exceptions to the master’s report, and grant the decree in divorce.
WATKINS, President Judge, joins in this dissenting opinion.