Otis v. Otis
Minnesota Supreme Court
299 N.W.2d 114 (1980)
- Written by Angela Patrick, JD
Facts
Emmanuel Otis (defendant) and Georgia Otis (plaintiff) divorced after 25 years of marriage. For the first two years of the marriage, Georgia had worked as an executive secretary. However, after the Otises had a child, Georgia became a homemaker. For the next 23 years, Emmanuel’s career continued, and Georgia worked in the home and provided support for Emmanuel’s career as requested by both Emmanuel and his employer. More recently, Georgia had expressed a desire to resume a career, but Emmanual did not approve. At the time of the divorce, Emmanuel was employed as an executive vice president, earning $120,000 per year. Georgia asked the trial court to award permanent spousal support. Instead, the trial court found that Georgia was in good health and, with some training, could return to the workforce and earn $18,000 or more per year. The trial court ruled that this meant Georgia was entitled to temporary, rehabilitative maintenance. The trial court ordered Emmanuel to provide spousal support to Georgia for only four years. Georgia appealed.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Todd, J.)
Dissent (Otis, J.)
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