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Family Law

Mar 11, 2020

Domestic Relations: Grandparent Visitation Rights-Denial of Reasonable Visitation

Mother appealed from the judgment granting grandparent visitation rights with mother’s son to the child’s paternal grandfather, the father of mother’s deceased husband. Mother argued that she did not deny grandfather reasonable visitation for a period exceeding 90 days. Where there needed to be only a 90-day gap prior to entry of a visitation order, […]

Mar 10, 2020

Domestic Relations: Child Support-Emancipation-Expert Testimony

(1) Where a father challenged a judgment modifying an original dissolution decree, the trial court erred in striking expert testimony on the son’s employability and emancipation, so the appellate court exercised its discretion to render the appropriate judgment, finding that the son was not employable and should not be emancipated for child support purposes. (2) […]

Feb 21, 2020

Domestic Relations: Child Support-Modification-Child Custody

Where a father challenged a judgment altering visitation provisions and increasing his child-support obligation, the father did not show prejudice from the admission of a court-ordered psychological examination because substantial evidence supported the finding that unsupervised visitation would endanger the children’s physical health or emotional development, and the trial court did not err in [...]

Feb 21, 2020

Domestic Relations: Order of Protection-Sufficiency of Evidence of Predicate Acts

Defendant appealed from the order of protection, arguing that there was insufficient evidence to support the trial court’s finding that defendant’s conduct constituted stalking or harassment and that the trial court failed to consider the harm to defendant from the order of protection. Where defendant failed to identify evidence in the record supporting his position […]

Feb 12, 2020

Domestic Relations: Termination of Parental Rights-Likelihood of Future Harm

Mother appealed from the termination of her parental rights to her child A.R.F., on grounds of neglect, failure to rectify and parental unfitness. The trial court found that termination was in the child’s best interest. On appeal, mother argued that the trial court erred in finding that there was a significant likelihood of future harm […]

Feb 12, 2020

Domestic Relations: Parenting Plan-Equitable Distribution and Maintenance Award

Wife appealed from the trial court’s dissolution judgment as to the parenting plan, maintenance award, equitable distribution and award of attorney fees in favor of husband. Where wife’s brief failed to comply with the requirements of Rule 84.04, wife failed to overcome the presumption of correctness in the trial court’s judgment. Judgment is affirmed. Simanis […]

Feb 3, 2020

Domestic Relations: Settlement Agreement-Business Non-Compete-Contempt

Where a husband challenged a contempt judgment entered against him for actions that his ex-wife claimed violated the parties’ settlement agreement in connection with their lawn care businesses, there was no explicit directive in the agreements regarding the parties’ obligations with respect to existing residential customers for the court to find a prohibition of the […]

Jan 17, 2020

Family Law: Child Custody-Child Support-Required Findings

Where a father challenged a trial court’s judgment granting in part and denying in part his motion to modify child custody and support, the trial court failed to make the statutorily required findings, so the judgment is reversed and remanded. Judgment is reversed and remanded. T.J.E. v. M.R.M. (MLW No. 74406/Case No. ED107697 – 10 […]

Jan 10, 2020

Domestic Relations: Joint Custody-Child Support-Monthly Income Calculation

Where a father involved in a dissolution challenged the denial of joint legal custody as well as the calculation and retroactive payment of child support, the trial court found that the father voluntarily stepped out of the older children’s lives and demonstrated a lack of empathy for the youngest child, and the father failed to […]

Jan 3, 2020

Domestic Relations: Paternity-Child Support

Mother appealed from the trial court’s judgment that granted father sole legal and physical custody of the parties’ child, with mother having visitation, in addition to awarding father child support and ordering mother to pay father’s attorneys’ fees and a portion of the guardian ad litem fees. Although the grant of sole legal and physical […]

Dec 30, 2019

Domestic Relations: Paternity-Child Custody

Mother appealed from the judgment establishing paternity and determining child custody, child support and parenting time. Mother argued that the trial court’s adoption of father’s parenting plan was against the weight of the evidence, exceeded the scope of the matter before the trial court, and was based upon an improper guardian ad litem recommendation. Where […]

Dec 26, 2019

Domestic Relations: Grandparent Visitation-Adoption

Where appellant sought grandparent visitation of her daughter’s children but the daughter had been legally adopted by her stepmother, the appellant was not the grandmother of the children under the statutory definition, so the trial court did not err in granting summary judgment in favor of the respondents). Judgment is affirmed. Ross v. Scott (MLW […]

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