There are multiple requirements you should be aware of if you plan to appeal an alimony order in North Carolina, and the deadline for noting your appeal is among the most important. You have only 30 days to file your notice of appeal. Missing this deadline could result in the dismissal of your appeal. Two critical elements of North Carolina’s 30-day timeframe to file a civil appeal are when the clock starts counting down and what notification requirements exist.
Timeframe for Appealing an Alimony Decision in North Carolina
Typically, a plaintiff or defendant has 30 days to note their appeal. This timeframe starts on the day the order they are appealing is entered. In the case of Stoner v. Stoner, Wife filed an appeal after the 30 days had expired, and the Court of Appeals dismissed her appeal. However, after the North Carolina Supreme Court vacated and remanded this decision, the appellate court had to consider Wife’s appeal.
Stoner v. Stoner
In Stoner, Wife filed for divorce, child custody, post-separation support, alimony, and attorney’s fees in 2017. The parties entered a Memorandum of Judgment in late 2017, in which they agreed, among other things, that Husband would pay post-separation support until the trial court ruled upon Wife’s alimony claims. After the entry of this order and over the course of approximately three years, Wife and Husband filed numerous pleadings.
In December 2019, an alimony order was entered that awarded Wife $530 per month in alimony. On January 22, 2021, the trial court entered an order finding that the 2017 Memorandum was a permanent order due to the amount of time it had remained in effect. On March 19, 2021, Wife appealed the alimony order and the 2021 permanent order. However, because more than 30 days had passed since the entry of these two orders, the Court of Appeals dismissed Wife’s appeal.
Service of Process in North Carolina Alimony Appeals
In July 2022, Wife filed a petition with the North Carolina Supreme Court alleging that she did not receive notice of the January 2021 order until February 25, 2021. This is relevant because parties to a case must be notified about various stages of the case, and orders must also be properly served or provided to plaintiffs and defendants in each case. Because Wife had not been served with the order, the Supreme Court granted Wife’s petition and remanded the case to the Court of Appeals.
Upon remand, the appellate court affirmed the trial court’s rulings regarding alimony and the order declaring the 2017 Memorandum to be a permanent child custody order.