Docen v. Docen

          Appeal from Mobile Circuit Court (DR-17-901207)

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          Thomas H. Nolen, Jr., Mobile, for appellant.

          Grady R. Edmondson, Mobile, for appellee.

         On Application for Rehearing

         MOORE, Judge.

         This court's no-opinion order of affirmance of March 8, 2019, is withdrawn, and the following is substituted therefor.

         Kevin E. Docen ("the father") appeals from a judgment entered by the Mobile Circuit Court ("the trial court") divorcing him from Victoria C. Docen ("the mother"); specifically, he appeals the provisions of the divorce judgment regarding custody of the parties' child ("the child") and child support. We affirm the trial court's judgment.

         Procedural History

         The procedural history pertinent to this appeal is as follows. In a separate action before the trial court, the trial court entered, on February 17, 2017, a judgment legally separating the parties and incorporating an agreement of the parties regarding the terms of that separation. Among other things, the parties agreed that the father would pay child support to the mother in the amount of $341.18 per month.

         On September 5, 2017, the father filed a series of documents seeking an uncontested divorce from the mother, including a divorce settlement agreement ("the divorce agreement") signed by both parties, which provided, in pertinent part:

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"2. THAT [the father] shall pay to [the mother] child support in the amount of $416.49 per month effective upon the issuance of the judgment of divorce, which amount is in compliance with [the child-support guidelines]."

         The father also filed a Form CS-41, see Rule 32(E), Ala. R. Jud. Admin., that had been signed by the mother, a Form CS-41 that had been signed by the father, and a Form CS-42 and a Form CS-43, both of which had been prepared by the father's attorney; those documents are ...