If a defendant wishes to examine a plaintiff touching the subject-matter of the bill, or his defense, he may, before or after filing his answer, exhibit interrogatories to such plaintiff, which must be answered under oath within thirty days after service, unless otherwise ordered by the court and upon his failure to answer within the time allowed, the bill must be dismissed as to such plaintiff, with costs, Unless the time to answer the interrogatories is extended.' (Emphasis added) 7, Appendix, Equity Rule 39(a), state in pertinent part:
' is not well taken.Īppellant's further contention is that the trial court committed reversible error where the court, on proper motion by appellant, and after thirty days failure on the part of appellee to answer interrogatories more fully or completely, did not dismiss appellee's suit.
34, § 20, of the Code, appellant's contention that the jurisdiction of the Circuit Court of Etowah County in this cause was not invoked for failure to appellee to style his cause 'In re the marriage of. While it is certainly better practice to follow the words of the statute, it appearing that appellee filed his cause for divorce from the bonds of matrimony in accordance with Tit. Therefore, in this instance, the lower court's jurisdiction was invoked when the bill was filed. 570, 63 So.2d 702.Ī bill in equity is not required to contain a title or caption.
34, § 20, Code of Alabama 1940, and is vested in the circuit court, in equity. Jurisdiction of divorce cases is drawn from Tit.
There can be no dispute that appellee filed a cause for divorce. 34, § 20, Code of Alabama 1940, as amended, are to be strictly adhered to or the jurisdiction of the court is not invoked. Appellant contends that the words and phrases contained in Tit. The appellant argues that the court erred to reversal by not dismissing appellee's petition on timely motion by appellant because of the manner in which the matter was originally styled. Sharon Aletha Phillips.' After several preliminary proceedings the appellee-husband amended his bill to conform to the aforementioned statute to wit, the amended bill was styled or entitled 'In re the marriage of. The pertinent facts as to this issue are that the original action when filed was styled 'Ira Phillips, Jr. ' in order for the court's jurisdiction to be invoked. 34, § 20, Code of Alabama 1940, as amended, requires a divorce action to be styled 'In re the marriage of. The transcript in this cause is approximately five hundred pages in length and hopefully, in the interest of clarity, we will categorize the issues raised by appellant in her assignments of error and discuss thereunder the appropriate facts and law as it applies.Īs we perceive appellant's brief, the first question to be decided is whether Tit. Some of the issues raised by these assignments of error are matters of first impression in this state. Appellant was not awarded any sum for alimony.Īppellant brings to this court some eighteen assignments of error. Certain personal property was divided, and appellant was awarded a reasonable attorney's fee. The appellee was ordered to pay $35 per week as support for the minor child.
The decree awarded to the appellant-wife the custody of the parties' minor child with reasonable visitation rights granted to the appellee-husband. Upon application of either the husband or wife, when the court is satisfied from all the testimony in the case, that there exists such a complete incompatibility of temperament that the parties can no longer live together.' 'The circuit court in equity has power to divorce persons from the bonds of matrimony, upon a petition filed by one of the parties, entitled 'In re the marriage of _ _ and _ _,' for the causes following. 34, § 20, Code of Alabama 1940, and reads as follows: This ground for divorce was added as a ground for divorce by our legislature in the regular session of 1971, being Act 222, amending Tit. The divorce was granted on the ground of incompatibility of temperament. This is an appeal from the Circuit Court of Etowah County, Alabama, in Equity, wherein a divorce A vincula matrimonii was entered. Simmons, Torbert & Cardwell, Gadsden, for appellee.