Court Opinion

ID: 9792700
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-31 02:34:48.27038+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T07:37:44.723928
License: Public Domain

CARDINE, Justice,
dissenting, with whom TAYLOR, Justice, joins.
I dissent. The divorce decree was modified by increasing appellant’s child support obligation from $700 per month to $1,270 per month. The trial court averaged appellant’s income from the preceding four years in arriving at $1,270 per month as appropriate, reasonable child support. The future effect of averaging, assuming appellant’s income is the same in the ensuing four years, is that appellant will pay too much in some years and not enough in others, but the average will be just right. If appellant’s income is dramatically more or less than expected, either party can seek modification as the law provides. That is fair. The trouble with the court’s opinion here is that it approves an escalation clause that provides for yearly increases in child support upon an increase in income, but does not provide for corresponding decreases in child support upon a decrease in income. That is unfair where, as in this case, the child support will be adjusted annually. Thus, I would affirm the award of child support of $1,270 per month but reverse and delete the escalation clause from the decree.