Patricia Nell Mince v. Leslie G. Mince

This appeal comes from a judgment allowing respondent an attorney fee for services relating to the motion of appellant, her former husband, to modify the visitation provision of the decree of divorce. Appellant and respondent were divorced on October 7, 1966, by a decree which awarded to the respondent wife custody of the two minor children, an allowance for their support, alimony and an attorney fee. Subsequently, in March of 1970, that decree was modified to increase the support allowance. At that hearing, the evidence established that appellant, a commercial airline pilot, was earning about $17,500 annually. Then, in June of 1970, appellant sought modification of visitation to allow him custody of the children for one month during the summer. Asserting the direful consequences of such an allowance of visitation, respondent brought her concurrent motions to require appellant to submit to a psychiatric examination under Supreme Court Rule 60.01(a), V.A.M.R. and for an attorney fee. Appellant could not obtain the approval of his airline employer for voluntary compliance with such a prospective order, and rather than risk the economic consequences, withdrew his motion. On November 5, 1970, the trial court after hearing evidence allowed respondent an attorney fee of $623.23 for services rendered in contest of appellant's motion to modify the divorce decree of October, 1966 as a visitation. It is this judgment alone which is the subject of this appeal.