Randall G. Himes v. Elizabeth Bates Himes

In this post-divorce dispute, ex-spouses filed competing petitions to modify alimony.  The wife also sought to hold her former husband in civil contempt for failure to maintain the term life insurance policy specified in the parties’ marital dissolution agreement.  The trial court declined to hold the husband in contempt.  Both parties obtained partial relief on their modification petitions.  The court granted the wife a judgment for a retroactive increase in alimony.  The court also reduced the husband’s alimony obligation prospectively based on his inability to pay the current amount during his retirement.  We conclude that the evidence preponderates against a finding that the husband had the ability to pay additional alimony in the first two months of 2019.  We further conclude that the wife is entitled to an award of post-judgment interest.  So we modify the court’s retroactive judgment accordingly.  Otherwise, we affirm.