Fred J. Pettid - Page 30




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             settlement of the Bartling Lawsuit”, a “tort suit,” and                  
             the payments in issue “are simply the periodic payment of                
             a damage award” that could be enforced against petitioner                
             by Ms. Wagner's heirs.                                                   
                  Unlike respondent, we do not believe that any                       
             provision of the Annulment Agreement or the Decree of                    
             Annulment requires petitioner to continue making the                     
             monthly payments under paragraph 1.f) of the Agreement                   
             after Ms. Wagner’s death.  As to the first and second                    
             points raised by respondent, we do not agree that the                    
             "binding agreement" provision or the “no modification”                   
             provision of the Annulment Agreement can be read so broadly              
             as to require the payments to continue after Ms. Wagner's                
             death or to constitute an agreement of the parties that the              
             alimony order will not terminate on Ms. Wagner's death, as               
             otherwise required by Neb. Rev. Stat. section 42-365.                    
                  We also disagree with respondent’s third point, that                
             the Annulment Agreement is a settlement of the Bartling                  
             lawsuit, a tort action, and the payments in issue are                    
             periodic payments of a damage award that could be enforced               
             by Ms. Wagner’s heirs.  While we agree that the Bartling                 
             lawsuit was settled in the Annulment Agreement, we do not                
             agree that it was necessarily a tort action or that the                  
             subject payments relate to an award of damages.                          






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