Ramsey v. Ramsey, 264 N.C. App. 431

Gary P. Ramsey (Husband) appealed a trial court order holding him in civil contempt for failing to "immediately" file a Qualified Domestic Relations Order (QDRO) required by a 2016 Consent Judgment dividing marital assets.
Wife filed a contempt motion after Husband delayed filing the QDRO; Husband filed the QDRO about ten months after the motion and $14,500 was transferred to Wife after plan approval.
Trial court entered a Contempt Order in February 2018: (1) holding Husband in civil contempt, (2) awarding Wife $1,268.68 in lost interest for the delay, and (3) awarding $2,000 in attorney’s fees to Wife.
Husband appealed; his appellate brief omitted multiple required Rule 28 components (no Statement of Facts, no Statement of the Case, inadequate standards of review, missing grounds for appellate review) and violated other Appellate Rules relating to service and certifications.
The Court of Appeals majority concluded the violations were gross and substantial, dismissed the appeal under Rules 25 and 34, and declined to invoke Rule 2 to reach the merits.
Judge Dillon dissented: he would have reached the merits, vacated the contempt finding and the lost-interest damages, but affirmed the attorney-fee award.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether appellate nonjurisdictional rule violations warranted dismissal	Ramsey did not directly argue sanction scope; proceeded on merits	Appellee implicitly relied on rules; no appellee brief filed	Majority: Violations of multiple Rule 28 provisions and service/certification rules were "gross and substantial" and justified dismissal of the appeal under Rules 25 and 34
Whether Rule 2 should be invoked to reach the merits despite default	Not argued to invoke Rule 2	Appellee did not seek Rule 2 relief	Majority: Declined to invoke Rule 2 (no exceptional circumstances or manifest injustice)
Whether Husband’s conduct supported civil contempt when QDRO was filed before the Contempt Order	Ramsey argued he complied before entry of the Contempt Order, so contempt was improper	Wife argued contempt motion was proper because of delay/noncompliance earlier	Dissent (would hold): Contempt improper because Husband had complied prior to the order; majority did not reach merits due to dismissal
Whether trial court could award lost interest and attorney’s fees in contempt proceeding	Ramsey argued lost-interest award was improper; attorney fees contested	Wife argued damages and fees were appropriate remedies for contempt	Dissent: Lost-interest damages improper in contempt (vacate); attorney’s fees allowable where contempt motion prompted compliance (affirm); majority did not reach merits

Dogwood Dev. & Mgmt. Co. v. White Oak Transp. Co., 362 N.C. 191, 657 S.E.2d 361 (discusses mandatory nonjurisdictional appellate rules, sanctions, and rarity of dismissal)
State v. Hart, 361 N.C. 309, 644 S.E.2d 201 (explains narrow invocation of Rule 2 for exceptional circumstances)
Pers. Earth Movers, Inc. v. Thomas, 182 N.C. App. 329, 641 S.E.2d 751 (brief deficiencies can impede review; facts must be adequate)
Selwyn Vill. Homeowners Ass'n v. Cline & Co., 186 N.C. App. 645, 651 S.E.2d 909 (discretion in invoking Rule 2)
State v. Castaneda, 196 N.C. App. 109, 674 S.E.2d 707 (example of invoking Rule 2 in criminal case to prevent manifest injustice)
Jolly v. Wright, 300 N.C. 83, 265 S.E.2d 135 (civil contempt is a remedy to enforce court orders, not punishment)
O'Briant v. O'Briant, 313 N.C. 432, 329 S.E.2d 370 (standards for civil contempt)
Ruth v. Ruth, 158 N.C. App. 123, 579 S.E.2d 909 (attorney's fees may be awarded when compliance occurs after a show-cause motion but before hearing)
Hartsell v. Hartsell, 99 N.C. App. 380, 393 S.E.2d 570 (North Carolina’s reluctance to award damages/indemnifying fines in contempt proceedings)