Marriage of Crabtree CA3

FACTS AND HISTORY OF THE PROCEEDINGS

We take the facts from the trial court’s “Ruling on Submitted Matter.” The parties entered into a marital settlement agreement which was incorporated into a judgment in 2012. A provision of the settlement agreement awarded attorney fees and costs to the prevailing party in an action to enforce the agreement. On November 14, 2022, Christopher pleaded no contest to three counts of contempt as alleged in Charlotte’s order to show cause. The order to show cause alleged that Christopher had violated the court’s visitation orders. The court accepted the pleas and found Christopher guilty. It sentenced him pursuant to a stipulation to one year of informal probation, a payment to Charlotte of $2,000, and 32 hours of community service. After a number of continuances, Charlotte’s request for attorney fees was heard on January 5, 2024. The trial court’s minutes note that records opened by the court and subpoenaed on behalf of Charlotte consisted of Christopher’s financial documents. The court released the documents to both parties. The documents are not part of the record in this appeal. The trial court decided it would award attorney fees and costs to…