Husband’s Second Appeal Fails

In husband’s second appeal from the denial of his request for a divorce on the grounds of desertion or a one-year separation, the Court of Appeals affirms for an  insufficient record on appeal, including husband’s statement of facts he failed to have signed by the trial court.

Husband and wife married in India.  After one year of marriage, wife returned to India with their minor child to complete an engineering exam.  About a year and a half later, husband filed for divorce on grounds of desertion or one-year separation.  Wife responded, denying desertion and arguing husband prevented her return to the United States by failing to complete the required dependent spouse visa.  After a hearing, the trial court denied husband a divorce finding he had unclean hands in preventing wife’s return and it would inequitable to enter a final decree of divorce when wife has expressed a desire to litigate her case and entering the final decree would foreclose her from contesting issues of support..  Subramanian v. Ravichandran, No. CL 2010-4118 (Dec. 6, 2010) [VLW 010-8-227].  The Court of Appeals dismissed husband’s prior appeal without prejudice for lack of a final order.   The trial court entered a final order reaffirming denial of a divorce for husband’s unclean hands.

On this second appeal, husband disputes the trial court’s application of the clean hands doctrine to deny him a divorce.  We affirm because husband has failed to provide us a sufficient appellate record as required by Rule 5A: 25(c)(3).  His statement of facts also lacks the trial judge’s signature required by Rule 5A: 8(c)(2).  Affirmed.

Subramanian v. Ravichandran (Felton) No. 2617-11-4, Oct. 16, 2012; Fairfax Cir.Ct.(Thacher); Robert Zaniel for plaintiff; Ranjeetha Ravichandran, pro se. VLW 012-7-287(UP), 4 pp.