Opinion ID: 2622804
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Whether ICWA's Divorce Exception Applies Here

Text: ICWA applies in a child custody proceeding [15] involving an Indian child. [16] ICWA's provisions, including the requirement to grant full faith and credit to judicial proceedings of Indian tribes, apply only to child custody proceedings involving Indian children. [17] Custody awards to one parent in a divorce proceeding are specifically excepted by ICWA's so-called divorce exception. [18] In John v. Baker ( John I ) we extended the divorce exception to exclude from ICWA's coverage custody disputes between unmarried parents. [19] We noted that the dual goals of ICWA  to protect the best interests of Indian children and to promote the stability and security of Indian tribes and families  are not implicated in custody disputes between unmarried parents. [20] Regardless of the outcome, in a dispute between unmarried parents, the child would continue to be raised in the home of a Native parent and in a Native village; thus, ICWA's exclusive jurisdiction and procedural guidelines are unnecessary to protect the family's or the tribe's interests in those situations. [21] The superior court used this reasoning to conclude that the divorce exception applies to custody disputes between grandparents when the parents are unavailable. We conclude, however, that the divorce exception does not extend to custody disputes between grandparents. In A.B.M. v. M.H . we held that ICWA does not have an exception for custody disputes within the extended family. [22] We further noted that a grandparent is an extended family member. [23] Although we recognized that, upon adoption by members of the child's extended family, application of ICWA was not required to preserve the child's ties to Indian cultural or social values, we could not justify creating a judicial exception on this basis alone. [24] It was error to create such an exception here. The divorce exception guarantees that parents can always litigate in state court their paramount parental rights. In comparison, persons who do not have rights as paramount as those of parents are necessarily subject to ICWA (assuming ICWA applies). We next address whether, as the Starrs argue, the tribal resolutions are entitled to full faith and credit.