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Law Court invites amicus briefs regarding the effect of a party's death during an appeal from a divorce judgment. Amicus briefs due by February 10, 2025
Date: 1/10/2025
The Maine Supreme Judicial Court, sitting as the Law Court, invites briefs of amici curiae in the appeal of Pamela J. (Tower) Weinle v. Alan R. Tower, Law Court docket number Som-24-178. In her appeal from a divorce judgment, Weinle challenges the court's determination of nonmarital and marital property, the division of property, the award of spousal support, and the award of attorney‘s fees. After the entry of a final judgment and the filing of her notice of appeal, Alan R. Tower died.
The Law Court held in Panter v. Panter, 499 A.2d 1233 (Me. 1985), that the death of a party to a divorce action after an appeal has been filed renders moot the divorce judgment and any division of marital property, abates the cause of action, and requires this Court to remand the matter to the trial court with instructions to dismiss the divorce action. The prevailing modern view, however, is that a divorce judgment‘s provisions regarding the parties‘ property, as opposed to the dissolution of the marriage itself and any allocation of parental rights and responsibilities, survives the death of a party and does not render moot a pending appeal challenging the provisions regarding the parties‘ property. See Francis M. Dougherty, Annotation, Effect of Death of Party to Divorce Proceeding Pending Appeal or Time Allowed for Appeal, 33 A.L.R. 4th 47 (1984).
The Court invites amicus briefs on the following issue:
Does the death of a party to a divorce action during the pendency of an appeal of the divorce judgment abate the cause of action and require this Court to vacate the divorce judgment and remand the matter to the trial court with instructions to dismiss the divorce action, or do the divorce judgment‘s provisions regarding the parties‘ property survive the party‘s death and remain reviewable on appeal?
The parties‘ briefs are available at the links below.
An amicus brief may be filed by or on behalf of any individual, entity, or group of individuals and/or entities without separate leave of the Court. Any amicus brief must comply with M.R. App. P. 7A and must be filed pursuant to M.R. App. P. 7(c) on or before February 10, 2025. The electronic copy must be sent to lawcourt.clerk@courts.maine.gov.
Dated: January 10, 2025
Matthew Pollack
Clerk of the Law Court
205 Newbury Street Room 139
Portland, Maine 04101
(207) 822-4146
lawcourt.clerk@courts.maine.gov