Ex-Wife Loses Bid for Support From Monastery Student : Ruling: Appellate court in Santa Ana rejects her claim that he should continue spousal payments of $739 monthly even after he quit his job for ‘life of prayer.’

A woman who tried to force her ex-husband to continue paying support even after he entered a monastery deserves nothing, an appellate court in Santa Ana has ruled.

Patrick Meegan gave up an income of $4,700 a month as a successful salesman to “pursue a life of religious observance and prayer” at the Holy Trinity Monastery in St. David, Ariz., according to the unanimous opinion of the 4th District Court of Appeal.

Lawyers for Elizabeth Ann Meegan had argued that entering a monastery is “no different than if Patrick had simply decided to stop all work and to spend the rest of his life surfing.”

But the court rejected her claim to continued spousal support payments of $739 monthly. She alleged that her ex-husband should have been required to prove that the change in his financial circumstances were beyond his control.

The appellate opinion, written by Justice Henry T. Moore Jr., held that Patrick Meegan was “well-motivated” and was not trying to avoid spousal support. Unless there was evidence that he was deliberately shirking his responsibilities, Patrick Meegan’s spousal support was correctly based on his earnings, rather than his ability to earn, according to the opinion.

Patrick Meegan’s assets amounted to $70,000 when he joined the monastery last year, and his ex-wife also sought an order freezing those assets to prevent him from “walking out the door and giving everything he owns to the Catholic Church,” according to the opinion. But the appellate court decided that Superior Court Judge Jack K. Mandel had properly denied that request.

Neither of the Meegans or their lawyers could not be reached for comment.