Matter of Adoption of A.J.R.

No. 01-440
IN THE SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF MONTANA
2002 MT 217N
IN THE MATTER OF THE ADOPTION OF
A.J.R. and M.A.B.,
Minor Children.
APPEAL FROM: District Court of the Eighth Judicial District,
In and for the County of Cascade,
The Honorable Kenneth R. Neill, Judge presiding.
COUNSEL OF RECORD:
For Appellant:
Kenneth R. Olson, Attorney at Law, Great Falls, Montana
For Respondent:
(No Respondent’s brief filed)
Submitted on Briefs: April 18, 2002
Decided: September 24, 2002
Filed:
__________________________________________
Clerk
Chief Justice Karla M. Gray delivered the Opinion of the Court.
¶1 Pursuant to Section I, Paragraph 3(c), Montana Supreme Court
1996 Internal Operating Rules, the following decision shall not be
cited as precedent but shall be filed as a public document with the
Clerk of the Supreme Court and shall be reported by case title,
Supreme Court cause number and result to the State Reporter
Publishing Company and to West Group in the quarterly table of
noncitable cases issued by this Court.
¶2 Darran B. (Darran) appeals from the judgment entered by the
Eighth Judicial District Court, Cascade County, on its findings of
fact, conclusions of law and order terminating his parental rights
to his children, A.J.R. and M.A.B., and granting the petition for
adoption filed by Justin D. (Justin). We reverse and remand with
instructions.
¶3 We restate the issue on appeal as whether the District Court
erred in terminating Darran’s parental rights pursuant to § 42-2-
608(1)(c), MCA.
BACKGROUND
¶4 Darran and Tammy D. (Tammy) were married in 1990 and have two
sons, A.J.R. and M.A.B. Darran and Tammy’s marriage was dissolved
in August of 1998. Pursuant to the Stipulated Parenting Plan,
incorporated by reference into the dissolution decree, Tammy was
designated sole primary residential custodian of the two children
and Darran was given supervised visitation rights. The decree
2
required Darran to pay $189 per month per child in child support,
for a total of $378 per month.
¶5 In July of 1999, Tammy married Justin. Later that month,
Justin petitioned the District Court to terminate Darran’s parental
rights to A.J.R. and M.A.B., and allow Justin to adopt the
children. The petition alleged that Darran’s parental rights
should be terminated pursuant to § 42-2-608(1)(c), MCA, on the
basis that he was unfit because he had not paid child support for
an aggregate period of one year prior to the filing of the petition
although he was able to do so. In December of 1999, Justin filed
an amended petition, again alleging that Darran’s parental rights
should be terminated because he had failed to pay child support for
an aggregate one-year period although able to do so and more
specifically alleging the child support amounts Darran had paid and
the amount he still owed. Justin subsequently filed a second
amended petition reiterating the allegations of the first two
petitions and adding allegations that Darran’s parental rights
should be terminated on the additional bases set forth in §§ 42-2-
608(1)(d), -608(1)(g), -608(1)(h) and 42-2-610, MCA. Darran
opposed all of Justin’s petitions.
¶6 In April of 2001, the District Court held a hearing on the
petition for termination of parental rights and adoption. The
court subsequently entered its findings of fact, conclusions of law
and order in which it found that Darran was unfit, Justin was a fit
and proper parent, and it would be in the children’s best interests
to allow him to adopt them. Based on its findings and conclusions,
3
the court terminated Darran’s parental rights and granted Justin’s
petition for adoption. Darran appeals.
STANDARD OF REVIEW
¶7 In an adoption case, we review a district court’s findings of
fact to determine whether they are clearly erroneous and its
conclusions of law to determine whether they are correct. In re
Adoption of C.R.N., 1999 MT 92, ¶ 7, 294 Mont. 202, ¶ 7, 979 P.2d
210, ¶ 7.
DISCUSSION
¶8 Did the District Court err in terminating Darran’s parental
rights pursuant to § 42-2-608(1)(c), MCA?
¶9 Generally, a child may not be adopted without the written
consents of both birth parents. See § 42-2-301, MCA. However,
consent to adoption is not required from a parent whose parental
relationship to the child has been judicially terminated. Section
42-2-302(1), MCA. A parent’s parental relationship to a child may
be judicially terminated by a variety of means, including the
granting of a petition for termination based on a court’s
determination that the parent is unfit. See §§ 42-2-607(2) and -
608, MCA. The termination of parental rights involves a
fundamental liberty interest and, consequently, a court’s decision
to terminate must be supported by clear and convincing evidence.
Matter of Adoption of Doe (1996), 277 Mont. 251, 255, 921 P.2d 875,
878 (citations omitted).
4
¶10 Justin’s petition requested that the District Court terminate
Darran’s parental rights based on parental unfitness and asserted
that, if Darran’s parental rights were terminated, his consent to
the adoption was not required pursuant to § 42-2-302(1), MCA. The
District Court agreed. The court concluded that Darran’s parental
rights should be terminated and, as a result, his consent to his
children’s adoption by Justin was not required. Darran contends
that the District Court’s finding relating to his parental
unfitness under § 42-2-608(1)(c), MCA, based on his ability to
contribute to the support of his children and failure to do so for
an aggregate period of one year before Justin’s second amended
petition was filed, is clearly erroneous and, consequently, its
conclusion that his parental rights should be terminated on that
basis is incorrect. Justin did not respond.
¶11 Section 42-2-608(1), MCA, provides that
[t]he court may terminate parental rights for purposes of
making a child available for adoption on the grounds of
unfitness if:
. . . .
(c) it is proven to the satisfaction of the court that
the parent, if able, has not contributed to the support
of the child for an aggregate period of 1 year before the
filing of a petition for adoption . . . .
This statute was enacted in 1997 as part of a general revision and
recodification of Montana’s adoption statutes. See 1997 Mont. Laws
Ch. 480, Sec. 71. Darran has not cited to--and we have not found--
any case law interpreting § 42-2-608(1)(c), MCA. Prior to 1997,
however, § 40-8-111(1)(a)(v), MCA (1995), provided that parental
consent to an adoption was not required where “it is proved to the
5
satisfaction of the court that the father or mother, if able, has
not contributed to the support of the child during a period of 1
year before the filing of a petition . . . .” The language in that
statute is substantially similar to the language now contained in §
42-2-608(1)(c), MCA, and we conclude our case law interpreting §
40-8-111(1)(a)(v), MCA (1995), properly may be applied to § 42-2-
608(1)(c), MCA.
¶12 In that regard, we have held that a petitioner in an adoption
case seeking to prove that a natural parent’s consent is not
required on the basis of failure to support the child bears a two-
fold burden. The petitioner must establish to the trial court’s
satisfaction both the natural parent’s failure to provide financial
support for the child during the one-year period prior to the
filing of the petition and the parent’s financial ability to
provide such support. Adoption of C.R.N., ¶ 9 (citing Adoption of
Doe, 277 Mont. at 259, 921 P.2d at 880). Here, Darran contends the
evidence at the hearing was insufficient to support the District
Court’s findings that both of the § 42-2-608(1)(c), MCA,
requirements were met. Because we conclude the District Court’s
finding that Darran was able to provide support to his children was
clearly erroneous, we need not address the additional one-year time
period requirement contained in § 42-2-608(1)(c), MCA.
¶13 In determining a natural parent’s financial ability to
contribute to a child’s support, a district court must address
several factors including 1) the parent’s ability to earn an
income; 2) the parent’s willingness to earn an income and support
6
the child; 3) the availability of jobs; and 4) the parent’s use of
his or her funds to obtain only the bare necessities of life before
contributing to the support of the child. Adoption of C.R.N., ¶ 15
(citing Adoption of Doe, 277 Mont. at 259, 921 P.2d at 880); In re
Adoption of V.R.O. (1991), 250 Mont. 517, 520-21, 822 P.2d 83, 85.
The District Court’s findings of fact relating to Darran’s ability
to support his children state, in their entirety, as follows:
Darran owns and operates a painting business which
includes doing custom painting and construction painting.
At no time since the divorce did he suffer any physical
or health problem which precluded him from pursuing that
business. Darran testified that his work was somewhat
seasonal, that he “pays when can” [sic] and “supported
kids whether could or not” [sic]. The Court finds that
Darran “was able” to make the required child support
payments as required for the period July 1, 1998 to June
21, 2000 and to the present.
These findings of fact clearly address the first and second
criteria set forth in the cases cited above: Darran’s ability to
earn an income and his willingness to work to support his children.
¶14 The District Court, however, failed to address the remaining
criteria: whether there are sufficient jobs available in Darran’s
seasonal employment as a painter to provide an income adequate to
provide support to his children and whether Darran uses his income
to obtain only the bare necessities of life before providing for
the support of his children. Absent findings relating to these
criteria, the District Court’s findings of fact, as a whole, are
insufficient as a matter of law to support its ultimate finding
that Darran “was able” to provide support to his children as
contemplated by § 42-2-608(1)(c), MCA. See Adoption of V.R.O., 250
Mont. at 522, 822 P.2d at 86. Moreover, no evidence of record
7
before us establishes the availability of painting jobs or the
amount of Darran’s income and the manner in which he spent it and,
consequently, no substantial credible–much less clear and
convincing–evidence exists of record which could have supported
such findings had they been made.
¶15 We conclude that, while the findings of fact made by the
District Court relating to Darran’s employment status are not
clearly erroneous, its findings were insufficient under Adoption of
C.R.N. and Adoption of V.R.O. to support its ultimate finding that
Darran “was able” to provide support to his children. As a result,
we further conclude the court’s finding of fact that Darran is an
unfit parent pursuant to § 42-2-608(1)(c), MCA, is clearly
erroneous and its conclusion that his parental rights should be
terminated on that basis is incorrect. We hold, therefore, that
the District Court erred in terminating Darran’s parental rights
pursuant to § 42-2-608(1)(c), MCA.
¶16 Reversed and remanded for entry of an order vacating the
termination of Darran’s parental rights and the grant of Justin’s
adoption petition.
/S/ KARLA M. GRAY
We concur:
/S/ JAMES C. NELSON
/S/ JIM REGNIER
/S/ TERRY N. TRIEWEILER
/S/ PATRICIA COTTER
8
Justice W. William Leaphart dissenting.
¶17 I dissent. Darran challenges the District Court’s conclusion that he was an unfit
parent under § 42-2-608(1)(c), MCA, based on his ability to contribute to the support of his
children and his failure to do so for an aggregate period of one year before Justin’s second
amended petition was filed. This Court reverses the District Court for its failure to fully
address the statutory requirement that he be found “able” to support; in particular, failing to
address the question of whether there were sufficient jobs available in Darran’s seasonal
employment as a painter to provide an income adequate to provide support to his children
and whether Darran uses his income to obtain only the bare necessities of life before
providing for the support of his children.
¶18 In reversing the District Court for its failure to fully
address the requirements of § 42-2-608(1)(c), MCA, the Court ignores the fact that
the District Court gave two independent rationales for its conclusion of “unfitness.” Although
the District Court concluded that Darran was an unfit parent for not contributing to the
support of his children, it also concluded that he was unfit under § 42-2-608(1)(d), MCA,
which allows for a finding of unfitness if, “it is proven to the satisfaction of the court that the
parent is in violation of a court order to support either the child that is the subject of the
adoption proceedings or other children with the same birth mother.”
¶19 Darran has not challenged the District Court’s conclusion that
he was in violation of a court order. The District Court’s
conclusion that Darran was in violation of an order of support is
an independent and sufficient basis for affirming the District
9
Court’s decision to terminate parental rights, and I would do so on
that basis.
¶20 I would also point out that the Court is incorrect in equating
the “one-year” requirement of the 1997 statute, § 42-2-608(1), MCA, with
its 1995 predecessor. The 1995 version required proof that the parent had not contributed to
the support of the child during “a period of 1 year before the filing of a petition . . . .” As of
1997, the statute now reads, “for an aggregate period of 1 year before the filing of a petition
for adoption . . . .” In adding the “aggregate” language, I suggest that the 1997 legislature
has opened the door to the tacking of time periods together to total a year’s arrearage. This is
in contrast to the prior requirement of a continuous chronological one-year period. Since the
Court does not reach the one-year issue, it should not unnecessarily confuse this issue with
dicta.
/S/ W. WILLIAM LEAPHART
Justice Jim Rice joins in the foregoing dissent of Justice Leaphart.
/S/ JIM RICE
10