Opinion ID: 1494070
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Application of the Proper Standard in this Case

Text: Having decided the appropriate standard to be applied when determining whether a modification of custody is warranted, we must now apply the standard to this case. The trial court failed to specifically identify any changed circumstances that warrant a change of custody. Furthermore, the trial court did not conduct an analysis of the best interests of the child. This failure to set forth supporting findings of fact has made our task of reviewing the decision more difficult. Without specific findings of fact, we cannot know upon which facts the trial judge relied in entering the judgment or the reasons underlying the court's ruling. Mr. Kendrick, however, has identified five purported changes in circumstances affecting the child's well-being in a meaningful way, which he maintains justify a modification of custody: [8] (1) that Mrs. Shoemake's work schedule on third shift adversely affects Jordan's welfare; (2) that Mrs. Shoemake's attention to Jordan's education has not been sufficiently aggressive and that she is incapable of meeting his educational needs; (3) that a tumultuous marital relationship between Mrs. Shoemake and her husband adversely affects Jordan's well-being; (4) that Mrs. Shoemake lacks sound judgment with respect to Jordan's medical care; and (5) that Mrs. Shoemake has a general tendency to subordinate the needs of her children to her own, which adversely affects her children's welfare. We examine each of these circumstances in turn.