In re Marriage of Nadolski

- Case: In re Marriage of Nadolski, 2025 IL App (3d) 240346-U (Ill. App. Ct., 3d Dist. Oct. 27, 2025) (Rule 23 order; non‑precedential).
- Parties: James Nadolski (petitioner/appellant) v. Teresa Nadolski (respondent/appellee).

Key legal issues
- Whether a later agreed court order (Nov. 20, 2018) that set a maintenance amount based on updated incomes superseded or negated the MSA’s express “true‑up” provision requiring immediate notification, recalculation, and payment of increased maintenance whenever either party’s “base rate” income rose.
- Whether James’s failure to comply with the MSA’s true‑up obligations supported a finding of indirect civil contempt and assessment of arrearages.
- Whether alternative relief (modification of maintenance or post‑secondary expense contribution) was appropriate.

Holding / outcome
- Affirmed. The appellate court held the agreed order did not negate the MSA’s paragraph requiring immediate recalculation and payment upon income increases. The trial court’s contempt finding was upheld, including the admission‑supported arrearage calculation (Teresa’s $90,216 figure) and post‑hearing determination of willfulness (purge set at $30,000). The court denied Teresa’s alternative request to modify maintenance or post‑secondary obligations.

Significant legal reasoning
- Contractual construction: The court treated the MSA as continuing to govern true‑up mechanics. The agreed order was read as addressing only the parties’ then‑base rates and setting a contemporaneous maintenance amount; it did not expressly repeal or modify the MSA’s paragraph three that required immediate notice and recalculation.
- Evidence of noncompliance: Teresa demonstrated James repeatedly failed to provide timely notice of raises and only revealed increases via tax returns. Email exchanges and testimony showed James resisted recalculations and disputed her calculations.
- Contempt analysis: The trial court (and appellate court) found sufficient evidence of willful noncompliance with the MSA obligations to support a finding of indirect civil contempt and an arrearage award. The court also observed that modification under §504/§510 was not warranted given the existing maintenance framework and the parties’ incomes.

Practice implications (for family law practitioners)
- When entering agreed orders that alter support or incomes, explicitly state whether (and to what extent) the order supersedes, modifies, or preserves MSA true‑up/recalculation clauses. Include integration and amendment language.
- Specify notice methods, timing, documentation (e.g., certified notice, email, required attachments), and an agreed calculation methodology and deadlines for any true‑up payments to minimize disputes.
- Preserve contemporaneous evidence of notice (texts, emails, proof of delivery) and exchange tax returns promptly; failure to notify risks contempt exposure.
- If seeking enforcement, prepare both contractual‑interpretation arguments and evidence of willfulness; consider parallel §510 modification petitions as alternative relief.
- Note Rule 23 status: persuasive but non‑precedential; treat reasoning as guidance rather than binding authority.