Kolenic v. Kolenic, 2018 Ohio 1106

Jeffrey and Elizabeth Kolenic divorced after ~11 years; separation agreement imputed Jeffrey's income at $175,000 and ordered spousal and child support with a schedule increasing child support to $2,100/month.
Jeffrey previously earned about $250,000/year but lost two bank jobs (one termination characterized as involving “fraudulent activity”); he later worked on commission at several banks with much lower reported earnings.
Elizabeth moved for contempt, alleging Jeffrey failed to pay spousal support, child support, and children’s medical bills; hearings were held in 2013 and 2016 with testimony and financial documents presented.
Magistrate found Jeffrey in contempt, concluding he failed to prove inability to pay, partly because his reduced earnings resulted from his own conduct and he produced insufficient documentation of 2016 income/commissions.
Trial court adopted the magistrate’s decision, ordered a 30‑day jail term (purgeable by payment of arrears and fees), and imposed a $250 fine and costs; Jeffrey appealed.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether inability to pay is a defense to civil contempt for unpaid support	Jeffrey: testified his income substantially decreased (commission job) and thus he cannot pay	Elizabeth: court should reject defense because Jeffrey caused income loss (terminations, poor choices) and failed to document 2016 income	Court: Affirmed — defendant failed to prove inability to pay; misconduct, lack of documentation, and prior earnings made his testimony not credible
Whether 30‑day jail term was an abuse of discretion	Jeffrey: 30‑day jail may cost him his job and worsen ability to pay	Elizabeth: Sentence authorized by statute and purge option preserves remedial nature	Court: Affirmed — jail term is within statutory limits and purge option makes it proper; no plain‑error shown

State ex rel. Cook v. Cook, 66 Ohio St. 566 (1902) (burden shifts to alleged contemnor to prove inability to pay alimony decree)
State ex rel. Ventrone v. Birkel, 65 Ohio St.2d 10 (1981) (standard for appellate review of contempt is abuse of discretion)
Courtney v. Courtney, 16 Ohio App.3d 329 (1984) (a contemnor may defend by proving inability to obey order)
State v. Awan, 22 Ohio St.3d 120 (1986) (finder of fact determines witness credibility)
Brown v. Executive 200, Inc., 64 Ohio St.2d 250 (1980) (contemnor may purge contempt by complying; ‘keys of his prison in his own pocket’)
Goldfuss v. Davidson, 79 Ohio St.3d 116 (1997) (plain‑error doctrine in civil appeals is narrowly applied)