256 results for 'cat:"Family Law" AND cat:"Guardianship"'.
J. Pirtle finds the county court properly dismissed the father's complaint to modify child support. The amounts at issue are arrearages and interest, and payments become a vested right of the payee as they accrue. While a past-due arrearage is already accrued and vested, a future payment is not, and the court may, therefore, modify the amount due in the future, but cannot forgive or modify those past-due. Affirmed.
Court: Nebraska Court Of Appeals, Judge: Pirtle , Filed On: January 2, 2024, Case #: A-23-135, Categories: family Law, guardianship
J. Bishop finds the district court properly entered the decree of paternity, custody, support and visitation. The never-married parents agreed to use a basic income worksheet to determine support rather than the joint-custody worksheet, but never submitted their proposed decree. Three years later the court entered a decree that deviated from guidelines. The father points out large deposits made to the mother's bank accounts but fails to note the deposits were loans for a house and car, rather than income. He also fails to sufficiently support his contention the court improperly imposed portions of, rather than the entire, agreement. Affirmed.
Court: Nebraska Court Of Appeals, Judge: Bishop , Filed On: January 2, 2024, Case #: A-22-586, Categories: family Law, guardianship, Contract
J. Riedmann finds the trial court properly overruled the father's complaint to modify a custody order and parenting plan. The mother received sole physical and legal custody of the son after the father incurred a broken back, traumatic brain injury and bleeding in his brain from a car accident. Though the father has since married and has responsibility for his new wife's children, he has been found to have a greater earning capacity than his monthly disability benefits. He has failed to show a material change in circumstances to warrant modification. Affirmed.
Court: Nebraska Court Of Appeals, Judge: Riedmann , Filed On: December 26, 2023, Case #: A-23-093, Categories: family Law, guardianship, Contract
J. Welch finds the lower court properly divided the marital estate and determined custody, child support and alimony in a divorce case. A financial services firm's statements corroborated the husband's testimony regarding contributions and withdrawals, and the lower court's decision to award the marital property to the wife so the children could remain in the home they had always known did not constitute an abuse of discretion. All evidence supports the court's calculations of assets, as well as the best-interest finding involving the children. Affirmed.
Court: Nebraska Court Of Appeals, Judge: Welch , Filed On: December 26, 2023, Case #: A-22-874, Categories: family Law, Property, guardianship
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J. Horton finds the trial court properly denied the mother's petition to modify the joint managing conservatorship provisions in a divorce decree, which controls possessory rights to her son. Evidence presented shows both parents take active roles in parenting, have a good relationship with the child, and provide him with a safe and stable home. Affirmed.
Court: Texas Courts of Appeals, Judge: Horton , Filed On: December 21, 2023, Case #: 09-21-00396-CV, Categories: Evidence, family Law, guardianship
J. Hoyle finds the county court properly terminated a father's parental rights to the child based on sufficient evidence. Investigators received a call from the mother saying that the child was injured in an altercation between her and the father when she was at his house to pick up the child. The investigator observed no injuries, though several investigators testified to regular occurrences of violence between the mother, father, and other family members, including legitimate threats involving weapons. Affirmed.
Court: Texas Courts of Appeals, Judge: Hoyle , Filed On: December 20, 2023, Case #: 12-23-00206-CV, Categories: Evidence, family Law, guardianship
J. Chehardy determined the trial court correctly dismissed a mother’s appeal of a child support and custody case in 2022 because she failed to pay the required fee by the deadline, while both the mother and her legal counsel failed to appear for a contradictory hearing in May 2023 in which the appeal was dismissed. Finally, the court lack jurisdiction because the mom failed to file a writ application seeking a review of the May dismissal. Affirmed.
Court: Louisiana Court Of Appeal, Judge: Chehardy, Filed On: December 20, 2023, Case #: 23-CA-453, Categories: family Law, guardianship
J. Combs finds the appeals court improperly vacated the trial court in an underlying action, in which a mother sought to have her husband adopt her out-of-wedlock child without the consent of the natural father. Though the appeals court agreed there was insufficient evidence the father willfully failed to support, it also found the mother had established a case the father did not maintain a substantial and positive relationship with the child. Evidence shows the mother would not give the father her address and blocked him on her phone and social media, and the father thought she and the child were living in another city based on the information he had. The trial court made no specific finding as to the sufficiency of the father's legal efforts to establish a relationship. Vacated.
Court: Oklahoma Supreme Court, Judge: Combs , Filed On: December 19, 2023, Case #: 120431, Categories: Evidence, family Law, guardianship
J. Arterburn finds the district court properly found the ex-wife in a post-divorce case was not in contempt. The husband says the ex-wife improperly claimed a particular child on filings for which the child was not designated. Evidence shows she relied on the advice of her tax advisor, the child's having reached the age of majority, her provision of support and adult child's consent to her claiming him as a dependent. The mother reasonably believed she could legally claim the child in her taxes. Affirmed.
Court: Nebraska Court Of Appeals, Judge: Arterburn , Filed On: December 19, 2023, Case #: A-22-978, Categories: family Law, Tax, guardianship
J. Stacy finds the district court improperly terminated the stepfather's relationship with his ex-wife's biological daughter. The court entered an order finding that although the stepfather had established a relationship with his stepchild during the marriage, he could not litigate issues of custody or parenting time in the divorce because his wife had effectively terminated the relationship by cutting off contact once the divorce was filed. The parental preference doctrine does not give the mother an unfettered right to unilaterally terminate the established relationship. Reversed.
Court: Nebraska Supreme Court, Judge: Stacy , Filed On: December 15, 2023, Case #: S-22-254, Categories: family Law, guardianship
Per curiam, the Vermont Supreme Court finds the trial court properly awarded the parental rights and responsibilities, but improperly awarded the parent-child contact schedule, between a mother and father with one minor child. The mother has been the child’s primary care provider and both parties have good parenting skills for the best interest of the child. The father claims judicial bias regarding the schedule, arguing the court’s unsupported findings were biased against him, but fails to demonstrate this. The parent-child contact award is remanded for additional findings. Affirmed in part. Reversed in part.
Court: Vermont Supreme Court, Judge: Per curiam, Filed On: December 15, 2023, Case #: 23-AP-062, Categories: family Law, guardianship
J. Guerrero reverses the appeals court's decision affirming the juvenile court's removal of the child from the drug-addicted father. The California Supreme Court granted review to resolve the split of authority regarding the meaning of “substance abuse" within the Welfare and Institutions Code verses the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders. Neither definition is essential. The law at issue assigns “substance abuse” its ordinary meaning of excessive use of drugs or alcohol. Though professional diagnoses can be relevant to determining the existence of substance abuse, the statute does not require such proof. Reversed.
Court: California Supreme Court, Judge: Guerrero , Filed On: December 14, 2023, Case #: S274943, Categories: family Law, Health Care, guardianship
J. Gruber finds the county court improperly entered an order modifying joint child custody involving the children's passports, international travel and education. The mother argues she neither agreed to the order nor authorized her attorney to do so. There is no record regarding whether an agreement existed, and no discretion is shown regarding the wife's motion to vacate. Reversed.
Court: Arkansas Court Of Appeals, Judge: Gruber , Filed On: December 13, 2023, Case #: CV-23-107, Categories: Evidence, family Law, guardianship
J. Pirtle finds the juvenile court properly continued temporary protective custody of the mother's son with the Department of Health and Human Services. Given the mother's prior issues with her children, her involvement with an abusive romantic partner with a significant criminal history and her history of substance abuse, the state alleged the son lacked proper parental care. Sufficient evidence shows that removing the son was necessary and that reasonable efforts were made to preserve the family prior to removal. Affirmed.
Court: Nebraska Court Of Appeals, Judge: Pirtle , Filed On: December 12, 2023, Case #: A-23-300, Categories: Evidence, family Law, guardianship
J. Miller-Lerman finds the court of appeals properly affirmed the juvenile court's termination of the mother's parental rights to her daughter. The daughter was removed at birth due to the mother's ill mental health. The juvenile court properly found all the statutory bases for termination, centering on neglect and mental health, had been proven. Affirmed.
Court: Nebraska Supreme Court, Judge: Miller-Lerman, Filed On: December 8, 2023, Case #: S-22-678, Categories: Evidence, family Law, guardianship
J. Wood finds the circuit court properly terminated the mother's parental rights to her child. The child tested positive for drugs, including meth, amphetamines, opiates and marijuana at birth, and the department exercised emergency custody after the mother failed to take part in services and was later arrested on drug charges. The mother’s failure to participate in services and her instability support the best interest finding. Affirmed.
Court: Arkansas Court Of Appeals, Judge: Wood , Filed On: December 6, 2023, Case #: CV-23-502, Categories: Evidence, family Law, guardianship
J. Pirtle finds the county court properly awarded the grandmother custody of her grandchild. The child lived with the grandmother, who cared for the child when the father was working. When the father was killed in a car accident, the grandmother filed for custody, which the child's mother opposed. The mother has several other children and leads a life lacking in stability. The county court properly found the mother lacked the maturity and parental relationship with the child necessary for proper care. Affirmed.
Court: Nebraska Court Of Appeals, Judge: Pirtle , Filed On: December 5, 2023, Case #: A-23-128, Categories: family Law, guardianship
J. Marion finds a lower court did not err in modifying child and medical support obligations following a pro se appeal by the father. While the father argues that such terms “cannot be changed without proof of fraud,” the Texas Family Code in fact allows for modification given changes in “the circumstances of the child,” as is the case here.
Court: Texas Courts of Appeals, Judge: Marion, Filed On: November 30, 2023, Case #: 08-23-00138-CV, Categories: family Law, guardianship
J. Brown finds the circuit court properly terminated the parent's parental rights to their three minor children. The children were removed after the parents were arrested on multiple drug charges and the family's home, filled with feces and trash, was found to be a health hazard. Furthermore, the parents failed to present themselves for drug testing. Affirmed.
Court: Arkansas Court Of Appeals, Judge: Brown , Filed On: November 29, 2023, Case #: CV-23-253, Categories: Evidence, family Law, guardianship
J. Thyer finds the circuit court properly denied the great aunt and uncle's petition for adoption after parental rights were terminated. The foster parents sought adoption but did not intervene in the dependency-neglect proceedings where the relative placement determinations were made until after termination. Following a termination of parental rights, relatives are no longer given preference over foster parents. Affirmed.
Court: Arkansas Court Of Appeals, Judge: Thyer , Filed On: November 29, 2023, Case #: CV-23-256, Categories: family Law, Due Process, guardianship
J. Massing affirms decrees terminating a mother’s parental rights regarding her two youngest children, who are fraternal twins. The Indian Child Welfare Act doesn’t apply here in any way that would change the case’s outcome because the mother has an extensive history of domestic violence and convictions for manslaughter and child endangerment, which resulted from an incident resulting in the death of one of her children.
Court: Massachusetts Court Of Appeals, Judge: Massing, Filed On: November 29, 2023, Case #: 22-P-1048, Categories: family Law, Native Americans, guardianship
J. Pellegrini finds that the trial court properly order the involuntarily termination of a mother’s parental rights to her three-year-old daughter and changed the child’s permanency goal to adoption. The child, who was born with a rare genetic condition that her biological parents did not have the means to accommodate for, has bonded with her foster parents, who have helped her make great progress. Affirmed.
Court: Pennsylvania Superior Court, Judge: Pellegrini, Filed On: November 28, 2023, Case #: J-S38031-23, Categories: family Law, Government, guardianship
J. Riley finds a lower court ruled correctly in terminating the parental rights of two parents. The parents argued the decision was “clearly erroneous,” but both parents have struggled with substance abuse, and children “cannot wait indefinitely for their parents to work toward preservation or reunification.” Affirmed.
Court: Indiana Court Of Appeals, Judge: Riley, Filed On: November 22, 2023, Case #: 23A-JT-1076, Categories: family Law, guardianship
J. Crone finds a lower court ruled correctly in determining that ruling that several children were “in need of services.” The father argued there was not sufficient evidence to back up this claim because they had a grandparent to stay with, but the proposal of giving a grandparent temporary custody was never “independently pursued by any of the parties.” Affirmed.
Court: Indiana Court Of Appeals, Judge: Crone, Filed On: November 21, 2023, Case #: 23A-JC-1285, Categories: family Law, guardianship
J. Arterburn finds the county court properly terminated the father's parental rights after police were called to the family's home and discovered their 3-year-old had been present during the father's assault on the mother and had access to drug paraphernalia. The father was convicted for domestic assault and has shown he is unwilling and unable to provide the child the stability, permanency, and the care she needs. Affirmed.
Court: Nebraska Court Of Appeals, Judge: Arterburn , Filed On: November 21, 2023, Case #: A-23-313, Categories: Evidence, family Law, guardianship
J. Murphy finds the trial court properly modified its custody order from sole custody of the children with the father to joint custody with the out-of-state mother. The father was hostile towards the mother and had attempted to interfere with the children's visitation with her. Though certain of the minor children were found to be socially awkward, with few or no friends due the father's homeschooling them, the court weighed this against concerns of removing the children from their home of nine years and from their father and siblings. Affirmed in part.
Court: Arkansas Court Of Appeals, Judge: Murphy , Filed On: November 15, 2023, Case #: CV-21-414, Categories: family Law, guardianship