Title: Division of Family Services of the Department of Services for Children, Youth and Their Families v. Shea

State: delaware

Issuer: Delaware Supreme Court

Document:

Download PDF IN THE SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF DELAWARE DIVISION OF FAMILY SERVICES OF THE DEPARTMENT OF SERVICES FOR CHILDREN, YOUTH AND THEIR FAMILIES, an agency of the State of Delaware, No. 269, 1999 Court Below: Family Court of the State of Delaware, in and for Sussex County in File No. CS9803509, Petition No. 98-09012. Petitioner Below, Appellant, v. MICHAEL SHEA and DOREEN HUBBARD, and MARGARET HURLEY (CASA), Respondents Below, Appellees. Before VEASEY, Chief Justice, WALSH and BERGER, Justices. Submitted: February 8, 2000 Decided: March 1, 2000 ORDER This 1st day of March 2000, it appears to the Court that appelleeMargaret Hurley, Court Appointed Special Advocate ( CASA ), has filed a motion seeking to dismiss this appeal filed by the Division of Family Services ( DFS ). The appeal is from the Family Court s award of supervised overnight visitation to appellee-Michael Shea with his minor children. In the motion to dismiss, CASA contends that DFS, who was the legal custodian of the minor children at the time the appeal was filed in June 1999, now lacks standing to further pursue the appeal in view of the Family Court s order of January 7, 1999, that granted guardianship of the minor children to the children s great aunt. Although DFS argued in the guardianship proceeding that the Family Court was without jurisdiction to consider the guardianship petition in view of this pending appeal, DFS appears to have abandoned that position and has filed an answer to CASA s motion to dismiss indicating that DFS has no objection to the dismissal of this appeal. NOW, THEREFORE, IT IS ORDERED that the motion to dismiss is GRANTED pursuant to Supreme Court Rules 3(b) and 29(b). BY THE COURT: /s/ E. Norman Veasey Chief Justice -2-