Havrilla v. Havrilla, 2014 Ohio 2747

Husband and Wife married in 1993 and have two children; August 2011 divorce filings initiated; temporary orders awarded Wife use of martial residence and responsibility for first mortgage, Husband for child support and second mortgage.
Wife employed a forensic accountant to investigate potential financial misconduct; she filed a contempt motion for insufficient financial accounting, held in abeyance pending trial.
Contempt hearing led to a March 2013 finding of contempt against Wife for mortgage nonpayment; jail 10 days with purge amount due by Sept. 9, 2013; no appeal taken.
July 2013 final divorce decree ordered Wife to pay $1,500 monthly spousal support and set Husband’s child support at $0; Wife timely appealed with nine assignments of error.
Trial court communications included post-decree transfer of the martial home to Husband, stay issues, and subsequent appeals; appellate court affirmed in part and reversed in part.
Wife’s first and eighth assignments sustained; remaining assignments overruled; remand for further proceedings consistent with the opinion.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Name restoration after divorce under R.C. 3105.16	Havrilla requested maiden name restoration	Husband challenged restoration	Wife’s name restoration required; error sustained
Transfer of martial home during stay	Transfer occurred in contravention of stay and without notice/hearing	Transfer was authorized by final decree despite stay	Wife’s second assignment overruled; no timely appeal from transfer order
Award of spousal support tied to Husband’s job loss findings	Court erred in basing support on Wife’s alleged role in termination	Court credibility assessments supported findings	Third assignment overruled; credible evidence supported discretion to award/spousal support
Offsetting spousal and child support	Offset unlawfully denied tax benefits and misapplied statutes	Offsetting compliant with FinPlan and tax considerations	Fourth assignment overruled; offset upheld
Adoption of shared parenting plan vs. prior agreement	Plan does not reflect parties’ agreement	Court acted within its discretion	Sixth assignment overruled; plan adopted consistent with record

Wallace v. Wallace, 195 Ohio App.3d 314 (9th Dist. 2011) (appellate review of support-related factual findings under manifest weight standard)
Eastley v. Volkman, 132 Ohio St.3d 328 (2012-Ohio-2179) (standard for reviewing manifest weight in civil matters; credibility of witnesses)
Colom v. Colom, 58 Ohio St.2d 245 (1979) (limits on enforcing temporary orders in final decree without explicit reference)