In re Marriage of Gulla

SUPREME COURT CASES

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State: Illinois

Docket No: 106612 Rel

Case Date: 06/04/2009

Preview:Docket No. 106612.

IN THE SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS

In re MARRIAGE OF SUZANNE GULLA, Appellee, and STEPHEN KANAVAL (Knobias, Inc., Appellant). Opinion filed June 4, 2009.

JUSTICE FREEMAN delivered the judgment of the court, with opinion. Chief Justice Fitzgerald and Justices Thomas, Kilbride, Garman, Karmeier, and Burke concurred in the judgment and opinion.

OPINION The circuit court of Lake County ordered appellant, Knobias, Inc., located in Mississippi, to pay to Suzanne Gulla a penalty for failing to withhold and remit child support from its employee's wages. The court calculated the penalty based on section 35(a) of the Income Withholding for Support Act (Withholding Act) (750 ILCS 28/35(a) (West 2006)). The appellate court affirmed. 382 Ill. App. 3d 498. We allowed Knobias' petition for appeal as a matter of right (210 Ill. 2d R. 317). For the following reasons, we affirm the judgment of the appellate court, but remand the cause to the circuit court to recalculate the penalty based on Mississippi law.

I. BACKGROUND In July 1994 the circuit court entered a judgment dissolving the marriage of Suzanne Gulla, formerly known as Suzanne Kanaval, and Stephen Kanaval. Pursuant to a marital settlement agreement, Stephen was ordered to pay, among other items, child support for their two children. In April 2004 the circuit court entered an agreed order and judgment finding that Stephen's child support obligations had previously terminated and imposing judgment against Stephen for the lump sum of $123,140.63 in past due child support. Stephen was ordered to pay $3,000 per month to Suzanne until the judgment was paid in full. In February 2005 Stephen became unemployed. In March 2005, the court entered an order deferring Stephen's obligation to pay the arrearage until he was re-employed. According to a November 2005 order, Stephen's attorney informed the court that Stephen was "employed by Knobias, Inc., [telephone number; fax number] in the State of New York." The court ordered Stephen to provide all necessary information for the issuance of a notice to withhold income to pay the arrearage. On March 20, 2006, the circuit court entered an order requiring Stephen to resume payment of the previously ordered $3,000 per month toward the child support arrearage and completed a "Uniform Order for Support" form. The court also issued to Knobias a "Notice To Withhold Income For Support." The notice directed Knobias to withhold a total of $3,000 per month from Stephen's pay and, within seven business days of the pay date, remit the money to the State Disbursement Unit. The telephone number, fax number and e-mail address of Suzanne's attorney were listed in the notice. Suzanne's attorney sent to Knobias, via certified mail, the income withholding notice and a copy of Stephen's child support order under a cover letter with the same attorney's contact information. The letter, directed to Knobias' payroll clerk, stated that the notice was effective immediately. According to the return receipt, Knobias received the income withholding notice on March 28, 2006. In October 2006 the circuit court granted Suzanne leave to file a petition for rule to show cause why Knobias should not be held in indirect civil contempt of court. Suzanne filed that petition the next month. The petition recounted the court's March 20, 2006, order requiring Stephen to resume paying the child support arrearage and -2-

the income withholding notice issued to Knobias. The petition alleged that Knobias received the notice on March 28, 2006. Further, the petition alleged that in "an intentional, willful and contumacious violation" of the notice, Knobias had refused to forward Stephen's withheld pay to the State Disbursement Unit as ordered. On December 4, 2006, Knobias filed an objection to the circuit court's jurisdiction over it pursuant to section 2

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