Court Opinion

ID: 9763666
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-29 02:51:50.534405+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T07:29:47.744129
License: Public Domain

KLINGEMAN, Justice,
dissenting.
I dissent. I would not grant the Writ of Habeas Corpus.
The majority opinion correctly sets forth the factual background of the case. It should be pointed out, however, at the time this judgment was rendered the part of the judgment under attack awarding relator’s wife a portion of relator’s military non-disability retired pay and the formula or method of division used by the trial court in determining the amount the wife was to receive was a legal and valid method of making such a division, sanctioned and approved by many decisions of Texas courts, both trial and appellate, over a period of many years.
*69It appears from the record that although relator was ordered to pay his wife approximately $468.00 a month out of his military retired pay, he immediately began a course of paying only $300.00 to his wife and continued to do so from October, 1980, through May, 1981, at which time he ceased making payments altogether. It is clear that for a period of many months before the decision in McCarty v. McCarty, -U.S.-, 101 S.Ct. 2728, 69 L.Ed.2d 589 (1981), was handed down by the Supreme Court, relator had deliberately and in direct violation of a valid and subsisting court order refused to pay the designated amount. No appeal was taken from the judgment of divorce. The judgment has become final. Relator’s act was in contempt of court, therefore, he should be assessed some punishment for his deliberate and contemptuous violation of the court’s order.
There are, however, a number of other reasons why I voice my dissent. Such reasons are hereinafter set forth.
(1) Despite the majority holding to the contrary, I do not consider the judgment entered by the trial court to be a void judgment. In my opinion it is, at the worst, an erroneous judgment. The majority opinion correctly points out a final judgment which is only erroneous and not beyond the power of the court to enter is not void and cannot be attacked collaterally. Consequently, relator’s collateral attack on such judgment must fail.
(2) The majority opinion relies on McCarty v. McCarty, id; Hisquierdo v. Hisquierdo, 439 U.S. 572, 99 S.Ct. 802, 59 L.Ed.2d 1 (1979); and Ex Parte Johnson, 163 Tex. 513, 358 S.W.2d 370 (1962), to support its decision. In my opinion the case before us is distinguishable. McCarty was a direct attack on a final judgment rather than a collateral attack. While Ex Parte Johnson, was a Habeas Corpus proceeding and a collateral attack, it did not involve military retired pay. Ex Parte Johnson involved Veteran’s Administration disability benefits. Such federal statute is separate and distinct from the federal military retired pay statute and contains specific provisions clearly showing a Congressional intent that the benefits to be paid the veteran are not to be affected or divided in any manner, as well as, a clearly expressed Congressional intent that state law be preempted.1 I find no such compelling language in the federal military retired pay statute.
(3)The cases relied on by the majority do not discuss the question of retroactivity. The majority opinion at least indicates to me that a retroactive application would be required. In my opinion such retroactive application is not justified. The consequences of retroactive application are frightening. Retroactive application opens the door to a number of suits filed by military retirees in similar situations, where the military retiree will seek a return of all or part of the award made to his spouse of a portion of his military retired pay. This leaves the other spouses in a most difficult position. Many spouses have devoted a great deal of their lives to the mutual benefit of both their military spouses and the military. Often such divorced spouses have accumulated little if any assets to support themselves. Consequently, in order to support themselves many divorced spouses will be forced to enter a difficult job market plagued with many problems. In addition, Texas courts, in order to achieve a basically equal division of property, often have awarded the home or other property to the other spouse, usually the wife. If this property award is disturbed the property division will no longer be just and equitable. Multifold other problems could arise with regard to the property division. Some authorities contend in these types of cases the entire property division provided for in the divorce decree will have to be done anew.
*70The Supreme Court in Chevron Oil Co. v. Huson, 404 U.S. 97, 92 S.Ct. 349, 30 L.Ed.2d 296 (1971), set forth a three-prong test to be applied in cases dealing with the retroactivity question. The test is set forth as follows:
In our cases dealing with the nonretro-activity question, we have generally considered three separate factors. First, the decision to be applied nonretroactively must establish a new principle of law, either by overruling clear past precedent on which litigants may have relied, see e.g., Hanover Shoe, Inc. v. United Shoe Machinery Corp., supra, 392 U.S., [481] at 496, 88 S.Ct., [2224] at 2233, [20 L.Ed.2d 1231], or by deciding an issue of first impression whose resolution was not clearly foreshadowed, see, e.g., Alien v. State Board of Elections, supra, 393 U.S., [544] at 572, 89 S.Ct., [817] at 835 [22 L.Ed.2d 1]. Second, it has been stressed that “we must ... weigh the merits and demerits in each case by looking to the prior history of the rule in question, its purpose and effect, and whether retrospective operation will further or retard its operation.” Linkletter v. Walker, supra, 381 U.S., [618] at 629, 85 S.Ct., [1731] at 1738 [14 L.Ed.2d 601]. Finally, we have weighed the inequity imposed by retroactive application, for “[w]here a decision of this Court could produce substantial inequitable results if applied retroactively, there is ample basis in our cases for avoiding the ‘injustice or hardship’ by a holding of nonretroactivity.” Cipriano v. City of Houma, supra, 395 U.S., [701] at 706, 89 S.Ct., [1897] at 1900 [23 L.Ed.2d 647],
After considering each factor set forth in Chevron, I have concluded that in cases involving division of property as is here involved, a retroactive application should not be given. The Supreme Court stressed that a court should weigh the inequities imposed by retroactive application and stated that where a decision of the court could produce substantial inequitable results if applied retroactively, there is ample basis for avoiding the injustice or hardship by a holding of nonretroactivity. We have clearly such a situation here.
(4) Furthermore, in my opinion, the holding in McCarty that California community property law was preempted does not necessarily mean that the community property laws of other community property states, such as Texas, are necessarily preempted so far as military retired pay is concerned.
For the hereinbefore set forth reasons, I would not grant the Writ of Habeas Corpus.

. “On the rare occasion when state family law has come into conflict with a federal statute, this Court has limited review under the Supremacy Clause to a determination whether Congress has ‘positively required by direct enactment’ that state law be preempted.” Hisquierdo v. Hisquierdo, 439 U.S. 572, 581, 99 S.Ct. 802, 808, 59 L.Ed.2d 1 (1979) (citing Wetmore v. Markoe, 196 U.S. 68, 25 S.Ct. 172, 49 L.Ed. 390 (1904)) (Hisquierdo dealt with pension rights under the Railroad Retirement Act).