Virginia,Mediation,Settlement, law Virginia Mediation Settlement Agreement Lawyers Attorneys
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Barbara A. Baldwin v.Edwin Frederick BaldwinCIRCUIT COURT OF BEDFORD COUNTY, VIRGINIAApril 23, 1999, Decided Facts: The parties were married on October13, 1995, and that they separated on or about February 27, 1997. The parties entered into a mediationsettlement agreement on January 14, 1998, and upon due notice to wife,depositions were taken of husband and his corroborating witness on April 16,1998. Plaintiff wife filed for divorcefrom defendant husband. The partiesentered into a mediation settlement agreement thatprovided, in part, that defendant would deliver to plaintiff certain separateproperty that was listed on a separate document. During depositions, defendanttestified that he was asking the court to ratify, affirm, and incorporate theagreement into the final divorce decree. Accordingly, the decree expressly stated that the agreement wasincorporated therein, pursuant to Va. Code § 20-109.1. Several months later, onplaintiff filed a motion to show cause why defendant should not be held incontempt of this court's final decree of divorce.Issue: Whether the defendant should be held in contempt for failing to comply with the final decree of divorce by not delivering plaintiff's separate property to her, as provided in the mediation agreement that was incorporated in the decree under Va. Code § 20-109.1?Discussion: The Court states that the mediation settlement agreement dated January 14, 1998, wasratified, confirmed, approved, and incorporated by reference into the finaldecree of divorce upon the request of husband, by counsel, and with the consentof wife, by counsel, pursuant to § 20-109.1 of the Code of Virginia. This court has therefore ruled the mediation settlement agreement to be a valid agreementbetween the parties, and this court will not now alter that ruling. The Court finds that the husband to be inindirect civil contempt of this court for his failure to comply with paragraph9 of the mediation settlement agreement, as ratified,confirmed, approved, and incorporated by reference into the decree entered June12, 1998. Husband could purge thecontempt and avoid the fine by delivering to wife that property which wasspecified in the agreement.Conclusion: The Court held that the Defendantwas found to be in indirect civil contempt and ordered to pay a fine toplaintiff for failure to comply with the terms of the mediationagreement because the agreement was expressly incorporated into the decree andwas therefore enforceable through the court's contempt power. Defendant couldpurge himself of the contempt by delivering plaintiff's property to her.Disclaimer:These summariesare provided by the SRIS Law Group. Theyrepresent the firms unofficial views of the Justices opinions. The original opinions should be consulted fortheir authoritative content
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