Virginia Court Decisions
Family Law - Child Custody & Visitation Rights

1794074 Child Custody - Dimitrios S. Mastoras v. Rebecca A. Mastoras 06/10/2008
Trial court did not err in denying appellant's motion for a change in custody where evidence did not prove a material change in circumstances since the parties entered the agreement awarding primary physical custody of child to appellee; no error in finding material change of circumstances had occurred warranting a modification of the visitation schedule

2013071 Adoption; Child Custody - Frances R. Gooch v. Doris Harris, James Harris and Joseph Wayne Gray, Sr. 06/10/2008
No error in trial court's order granting adoption of appellant's child over her objection where Code § 63.2-1205 no longer requires any specific finding that the failure to grant the petition for adoption would be detrimental to the child

070933 Child Custody, Visitation, Same Sex union, choice of law, Jurisdiction - Miller-Jenkins v. Miller-Jenkins 06/06/2008 (Revised 06/10/2008)
In a child custody dispute arising out of the dissolution of a same-sex civil union entered into under Vermont law, because the Court of Appeals' holding in an earlier appeal is binding under the "law of the case" doctrine with respect to the parties and the issues in the instant case, the merits of the underlying issues presented in this appeal are not reached. For these reasons, the Court of Appeals' judgment directing a Virginia circuit court to register a custody and visitation order rendered in Vermont upon consideration of the federal Parental Kidnapping Prevention Act, 28 U.S.C. § 1738A, and the requirements of full faith and credit, is affirmed.

1494072 Visitation - Christine M. Stadter v. Jennifer L. Siperko 06/03/2008
Trial court did not err in finding that while appellant was a person with a legitimate interest in child, she did not prove by clear and convincing evidence that child would suffer actual harm if visitation were not awarded

1198072 Child Custody -Anonymous C v. Anonymous B and Albemarle County Department of Social Services 04/29/2008
Trial court's order vacated where despite parties' stipulation to the nonspecific finding of abuse by juvenile court, trial court was required to hear evidence and make findings on the issue in order to allow the trial court to enter a protective order containing terms designed to meet the best interests of the child while taking into consideration the rights of the parents

2546072 Custody; Parental Rights - Barry Jackson, Sr. v. Lancaster County Department of Social Services 04/22/2008
Summary affirmance -Trial court's termination of appellant's parental rights to his three children supported by clear and convincing evidence

2727074 Parental Rights; Custody - Kenneth Anderson, Sr. v. Alexandria Department of Human Services 04/15/2008
Summary affirmance - trial court did not err in finding evidence sufficient to support termination of appellant's parental rights to his son

3069062 Shannon T. Alexander v. David S. Flowers - Custody, Attorney Fees, Recusal - 03/25/2008
Trial court erred in denying appellant her right to a de novo hearing in the circuit court and using the award of attorney's fees to appellee as a punitive measure for pursuing her right to seek a trial de novo

1684074 Phyllis Denise Reese v. Mark Alan Reese - Custody, military pension, divorce 03/25/2008
Trial court did not err in denying appellant's request for a continuance of custody hearing where she failed to exercise diligence in securing attendance of child witness and in determining appellee's child care costs; trial court erred in its determination of the appropriate marital share of appellee's military pension

0728072 Margaret Bailey v. Halifax Department of Social Services - Child Custody, Parental Rights - 03/11/2008
Trial court did not err in terminating appellant's parental rights to her son where evidence proved she was unable to remedy the condition leading to the removal and foster care of her son

2147071 Karen Staples v. Chesapeake Department of Human Services - Child Custody, Parental Rights - 03/11/2008
Termination of appellant's parental rights to her child affirmed where question of whether trial court erred in considering petition for termination because petition did not specify which subsection of Code § 16.1-283 appellee was proceeding under barred by Rule 5A:18; evidence sufficient to support termination

2360072 Keon McDonald v. Henrico County Department of Social Services - Child Custody, Parental Rights -03/11/2008
Summary affirmance - no error in termination of appellant's parental rights to his daughter where clear and convincing evidence proved appellant failed to maintain contact with or substantially plan for the future of the child

0858074 Angela Segura v. Fairfax County Department of Family Services - Parental Rights, Child Custody, Adoptive Parents - 02/26/2008
Trial court did not err in finding it lacked jurisdiction to entertain appellant's petition to reverse the termination of her parental rights where the child had been placed in the home of adoptive parents

0494074 James J. D.Ambrosio v. Debra M. Fowler - Child Custody, Child Support, Visitation - 02/19/2008
No error in trial court's decision, after considering the best interests of the child, to award primary physical custody of child to appellee, requiring a reasonable notice provision requiring notice to attend child's special events outside appellant's visitation times, governing medical decision making authority or in award of child support

1121074 Rajan Jagannathan v. Valeria Shepeleva Jagannathan - Criminal Law, Child Custody - 02/19/2008
Trial court did not err in sentencing appellant to twelve months in jail for contempt, in denying a motion to set aside that order, and in prohibiting appellant from posting materials on the Internet

0494074 Child Custody, Visitation, Child Support - James J. D.Ambrosio v. Debra M. Fowler 02/19/2008
No error in trial court's decision, after considering the best interests of the child, to award primary physical custody of child to appellee, requiring a reasonable notice provision requiring notice to attend child's special events outside appellant's visitation times, governing medical decision making authority or in award of child support

0747074 Child Custody, Property Division, & Child Support - Peter Jones v. Ann C. Matalavage 02/12/2008
Trial court did not err in awarding attorney's fees to appellee under property settlement agreement of parties based on counsel's representation of fees and in awarding child support based on sole custody guidelines rather than appellant's suggestion of a divided formula

0754074 Sole Legal Custody - Anne Elizabeth Sirney v. Richard Paul Sirney 12/27/2007
Summary affirmance - Trial court did not err in awarding sole legal custody of the parties' children to father

1007064 Child Custody - Earl S. Garrett v. Warren County Department of Social Services 08/28/2007
Trial court did not err in its analysis of Code §§ 20-124.2 and 20-124.3 and in concluding that it was in best interest of children to deny custody to appellant, their grandfather

2792053 Child Custody - Lynchburg Division of Social Services v. James Cook, Sandra Cook and Jimmy Cook 08/14/2007
Upon rehearing en banc, trial court's order granting custody of a child to her grandparents is affirmed

2510061 Child Custody - Christopher Scott Swalef v. Andrea Anderson 06/26/2007 Circuit court did not abuse its discretion when it declined to exercise jurisdiction over the custody petition filed by father or when it deferred to the authority of the White Earth Court; judgment affirmed

2226061 Child Custody - Kimberly Wilson Riley v. Kevin James Riley 06/12/2007
Summary affirmance - trial court did not abuse its discretion in awarding joint custody and in declining to award mother primary custody

0688064 Child Custody & Visitation - Janet Miller-Jenkins v. Lisa Miller-Jenkins 04/17/2007
Trial court erred in ruling that a Vermont order concerning child custody and visitation between the parties could not be registered in Virginia; trial court's March 1, 2006 order is vacated and the case is remanded to the trial court with instruction to enter an order allowing appellant to register the Vermont order in Virginia

2379064 Modification of Custody & Visitation - Donald Allen Masters v. Theresa Marion Sutton 04/03/2007
Summary affirmance - trial court did not err in granting a motion for modification of child custody and visitation filed by mother

0768064 Legal Custody - Jeremey N. Place v. Candace M. Roach 03/27/2007
Trial court did not err in denying appellant's petition for sole legal custody of the parties' two minor children, in denying appellant's petition for supervised visitation with the parties' two minor children by mother, and in transferring sole legal and physical custody of the parties' two minor children to mother

1072061 Child Custody & Parental Rights - Travis Priest v. Deanna Credle 03/20/2007
This Court holds that the trial court applied the correct standard in determining the best interests of the children and that there was sufficient evidence to support such a determination; trial court did not abuse its discretion by denying father's motion to amend visitation, and in awarding mother primary physical custody of the children

060554 Divorce & Child Custody - Switzer v. Switzer 03/02/2007
The Court of Appeals abused its discretion in summarily dismissing divorce and custody appeals brought of right by an indigent pro se litigant based on its prior order barring him from filing future appeals until he paid a $500 judgment entered against him pursuant to Code § 8.01-271.1 as a sanction for filing a frivolous appeal in another custody case involving his son. The order was not narrowly tailored to correct the problem of frivolous filings, and summary dismissal was an unduly severe sanction depriving him of the statutory right to consideration of the appeals. The judgments are reversed and the cases are remanded.

0226062 Child Visitation - Benjamin H. Rice, Sr. and Kathleen W. Rice v. Benjamin H. Rice, Jr. and V. Cameille Cromer 12/28/2006
Trial court did not err in its interpretation of Code Section 20-124.3:1 and its subsequent ruling on the motion in limine; trial court's denial of appellants' petition for visitation is affirmed

0172062 Child Visitation - Tammy Leigh O'Rourke and Brian O'Rourke v. Victor John Vuturo, Jr. 12/19/2006
Trial court possessed subject matter jurisdiction to adjudicate this case; trial court did not err by granting appellee visitation with appellants' child; no error in trial court's ordering the evaluation under the authority of Code Section 20-124.2(D)

2654044 Child Custody & Visitation - Janet Miller-Jenkins v. Lisa Miller-Jenkins 11/28/2006
Trial court erred in failing to recognize that the Parental Kidnapping Prevention Act prevented its exercise of jurisdiction and required it to give full faith and credit to the custody and visitation orders of the Vermont court; the orders of the trial court are vacated and this matter is remanded to the trial court

2064052 Visitation Rights - Philip Surles v. Kristan Mayer and Marty Cullen, Jr. 04/25/2006
Trial court's holding that appellant lacked standing to pursue visitation with his biological daughter's half-sibling is harmless error as appellant failed to present any evidence indicating that the absence of visitation would result in actual harm to the child; trial court's denial of appellant's petition for visitation is affirmed

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