RI Supreme Court Upholds Divorce Health Insurance Agreement

The Rhode Island Supreme Court ruled this week that that an ex-husband cannot escape liability for a ten year old agreement to provide health insurance for his ex-wife. In O'Donnell v. O'Donnell, the ex-husband argued in Newport Family Court that notwithstanding his testimony in Family Court at his divorce hearing about his agreement to provide health insurance to his then wife until she reached 65, "the parties never truly reached an agreement" and that there "was no meeting of the minds" because the agreement testified to in open court had not been reduced to a written marital settlement agreement. The Court found that husband's "efforts to be relieved of the terms of the agreement that was set forth on the record and later introduced as an exhibit are wholly without merit." McIntyre Tate appellate attorney Robert Parker successfully defended the ex-wife in husband's Supreme Court appeal.