Title: Ex Parte Williams
Citation: 474 So. 2d 707
Docket Number: N/A
State: Alabama
Issuer: Alabama Supreme Court
Date: May 10, 1985

474 So. 2d 707 (1985)
Ex parte Janice Elena WILLIAMS.
(re Janice Elena WILLIAMS v. Joe Jackson WILLIAMS).
84-133.

Supreme Court of Alabama.
May 10, 1985.
*708 George K. Elbrecht, Monroeville, for petitioner.
Wendell C. Owens, Monroeville, for respondent.
BEATTY, Justice.
Petitioner Janice Williams and respondent Joe Williams were divorced in February of 1983. By the terms of the divorce decree, Janice was awarded custody of their minor son, Chad, and Joe was given broad visitation rights. That decree, however, contained no geographical restrictions with respect to the residence of the minor child or Janice Williams, the custodial parent. Some of the facts as set out in the opinion rendered by the Court of Civil Appeals, 474 So. 2d 705, are as follows:
The events and proceedings that followed the granting of this order, which included the bringing of kidnapping and contempt charges against Janice Williams, culminated in an order entered January 25, 1984, denying her all visitation rights. Janice Williams appealed to the Court of Civil Appeals, which affirmed the trial court's orders, finding that it had not abused its discretion. Rehearing was denied, and Janice Williams petitioned this Court for a writ of certiorari. We granted the writ pursuant to A.R.A.P., Rule 39(c)(4), to consider two issues raised by petitioner: First, did the ex parte order entered August 26, 1983, which, without notice or hearing, temporarily modified the prior custody decree, deprive petitioner of her legal rights without due process of law? Second, was there *709 a showing sufficient to justify the trial court's issuance of the temporary restraining order?
It is undisputed that by a default judgment of divorce entered February 16, 1983, Janice Williams was given "the general custody and control of the minor child, Chad Dirk Williams," subject to the visitation rights of Joe Williams. Nor is it disputed that this custody decree contained no geographical restrictions whatsoever on the petitioner's residence. Furthermore, it is undisputed that the August 26, 1983, order, "plac[ing] the minor child, Chad Dirk Williams, in the custody of [Joe Williams], pending a hearing," was entered, without notice to petitioner or hearing, based solely "upon the verified Petition of Joe Jackson Williams, alleging that the minor child ... is about to be removed from the State of Alabama, without permission of the Court or without notice to [Joe Williams]." We find that, on these facts, petitioner's rights to due process were violated.
In Ex parte Shuttleworth, 410 So. 2d 896 (Ala.1981), cert. den., ___ U.S. ___, 104 S. Ct. 2151, 80 L. Ed. 2d 537 (1984), this Court decided that due process requires that even the parent of an illegitimate child be given notice prior to the revocation of any parental rights which that parent may have. In so holding, one of the cases this Court followed was the leading case of Sinquefield v. Valentine, 159 Miss. 144, 132 So. 81 (1931), Annot., 76 A.L.R. 238 (1932), where
Another case noted at Annot. 76 A.L.R. 238, 254, is Gitsch v. Wight, 61 Utah 175, 211 P. 705 (1922), a case directly in point. In Gitsch, the father had been awarded custody of a minor child by a prior decree. Later, the mother brought an action in district court against the father, seeking custody of their minor child. In her petition, the mother also asked that she be given temporary custody of the child pending a final custody determination. The trial court in Gitsch, without notice to the father and without giving him an opportunity to be heard, entered an order awarding the mother temporary custody of the child pending a final custody hearing, just as did the trial court in the case at bar. In annulling that order awarding temporary custody, the Supreme Court of Utah said:
We agree with and adopt that Court's analysis, and hold that, except in certain narrow circumstances hereinafter discussed, a parent having custody of a minor child cannot be deprived of that custody, even temporarily, without being given adequate notice under Rules 4 and 5, A.R. Civ.P., and an opportunity to be heard. See also Danford v. Dupree, 272 Ala. 517, 520, 132 So. 2d 734, 755 (1961), where this Court said:
Accord, Thorne v. Thorne, 344 So. 2d 165 (Ala.Civ.App.1977), where the Court of Civil Appeals held that due process requires that a parent be given adequate notice that his or her right to custody is to be considered by the court in any given proceedings.
We note that the court in Thorne v. Thorne, supra, cited with approval the case of Ex parte White, 245 Ala. 212, 16 So. 2d 500 (1944), in which this Court, in upholding a temporary award of custody to the father which had been granted without notice to the mother, stated:
At first glance, it may appear that Ex parte White is contrary to our holding in this case. Nevertheless, White, supra, is distinguishable from the case at bar, and, further, the Court of Civil Appeals in Thorne, supra, correctly stated the limited application of the above quoted language from Ex parte White:
We also point out that the parents in Ex parte White were not divorced, but merely separated, and for aught that appears from the opinion, neither parent had been granted custody of the child during the separation by a court order. In other words, in Ex parte White, the order awarding custody to the father pendente lite did not have the effect of temporarily modifying a prior decree awarding custody to the mother. That is not the situation in the case at bar. Janice Williams was awarded custody of her minor son, Chad, by the default judgment of divorce. Furthermore, in his verified complaint, Joe Williams made no allegations of endangerment to Chad's health and physical well-being.
Accordingly, this case being dissimilar to Ex parte White, supra, and not falling within the endangerment exception recognized in Thorne v. Thorne, supra, we hold that the trial court was without the power to issue a temporary order modifying the prior custody decree without giving *711 petitioner due notice and opportunity to be heard. Therefore, that order is due to be reversed.
Because the order transferring custody must be reversed on due process grounds, we need not reach the merits of respondent's petition for modification of the prior custody decree. However, as guidance to the trial court, in the event there are further proceedings, we cite the case of Cheatham v. Cheatham, 344 So. 2d 525 (Ala.Civ.App.1977), as modified by Ex parte McLendon, 455 So. 2d 863 (Ala.1984).
Rule 65(b), A.R.Civ.P., gives the trial court the power to grant a temporary restraining order without notice to the adverse party, but only in limited circumstances. Rule 65(b), in pertinent part, provides:
While the trial court is accorded wide discretion in determining whether or not a temporary restraining order should be granted, when such an order is issued without a hearing, a close scrutiny of the existing circumstances under which it is sought should be made by the trial court. Ex parte Purvis, 382 So. 2d 512 (Ala.1980); Lorch, Inc. v. Bessemer Mall Shopping Center, Inc., 294 Ala. 17, 310 So. 2d 872 (1975). Furthermore, this kind of relief cannot be accorded without notice or hearing unless "the verified facts of the complaint clearly justify the petitioner's apprehension about the threat of irreparable injury. See Committee Comments, Rule 65, A.R.C.P." Falk v. Falk, 355 So. 2d 722, 725 (Ala.Civ.App.1978).
Our own close scrutiny of the verified complaint filed by respondent reveals not only that the requirements of Rule 65(b)(2) were not met, but also that the only "immediate and irreparable injury, loss, or damage" alleged by respondent was a disruption of his visitation rights if the child was taken to Georgia. We find that this allegation falls short of constituting a clear threat of irreparable and immediate injury as required by Rule 65(b)(2).
In Falk v. Falk, supra, cited by the Court of Civil Appeals in its opinion, the court upheld the granting of a temporary restraining order issued without notice. That case, however, is distinguishable from the present case because in Falk the "husband had set out sufficient facts in his verified petition to show irreparable injury." Falk v. Falk, supra, at 725. Those facts were as follows:
Clearly, factors such as those presented in Falk warrant the issuance of a temporary restraining order without notice under Rule 65(b). However, no such compelling factors were alleged in this case. Moreover, "a parent entrusted with the custody of a child has the right, if not restricted by the court, to remove the child from the jurisdiction of the court granting custody." Cheatham, supra, at 527.
Accordingly, we conclude that the trial court abused its discretion in granting the temporary restraining order without notice or hearing.
Since the order entered on August 26, 1983, granting Joe Williams's petition for a temporary restraining order and modification of the former custody decree, is due to be reversed, so, too, it is necessary to reverse the subsequent orders entered September 21, 1983, and January 25, 1984, finding Janice Williams in contempt of the August 26th order and denying her all visitation rights.
For these reasons, we reverse the judgment of the Court of Civil Appeals and remand the case to that court for it to enter an order consistent with this opinion.
REVERSED AND REMANDED.
All the Justices concur.