In re Marriage of January

Citations

• 2019 COA 87
• 446 P.3d 954

Syllabus

The permanent orders in the parties' dissolution of marriage required them to share their daughter's tutoring expenses in proportion to their incomes. Father subsequently refused to pay his share of the daughter's tutoring costs. Mother moved for remedial sanctions in the form of tutoring expenses and attorney fees. The magistrate found father in contempt and imposed sanctions consisting of the tutoring expenses and mother's attorney fees incurred in connection with the contempt proceeding. Father objected to the attorney fees award and requested a hearing. The magistrate has not yet set a hearing or ruled on father's objection. Father also petitioned for district court review of the contempt order. The district court adopted the magistrate's order awarding the tutoring expenses to mother. Father appealed the district court's ruling. The parties were ordered to show cause why the appeal should not be dismissed, without prejudice, for lack of a final, appealable judgment. The Court of Appeals determined that CRCP 107(d)(2) allows a district court to award reasonable attorney fees as a remedial sanction. Thus, a contempt order is not final until the attorney fees portion of the remedial sanction has been resolved, and father appealed too soon. The appeal was dismissed without prejudice.