Opinion ID: 2513985
Heading Depth: 5
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Leslie's interests are materially adverse to Richard's.

Text: Richard next argues that his interests were materially adverse to Leslie's in the termination proceedings. On appeal, the state claims that Richard and Leslie's positions were aligned, as neither wanted the state to terminate their parental rights. Further, the state now maintains that it would not advance Leslie's case to show that Richard was an abusive father because under AS 47.10.011 the state could terminate Leslie's parental rights based on Richard's conduct alone. This argument stands in direct contrast to DFYS's position at trial. As discussed earlier, at the pretrial conference, the state declared that it's clear that Mr. Kay would have a conflict to continued representation of [Leslie], when he represented Richard at the criminal matter as Richard and Leslie obviously... have separate interests. [Leslie] wants her child back, [Richard] wants his child back, he's in jail, they're separated, they don't, you know, have much contact together.... [T]hat's a clear conflict. Again, where a party concedes a fact at trial, that fact can not be challenged on appeal. [22] Even if the state had not conceded at trial that there was a conflict, we find its current argument to be without merit and its reliance on AS 47.10.011 to be misplaced. First, AS 47.10.011 governs an initial finding that a child is in need of aid. Alaska Statute 47.10.088 governs termination and, while section.011 is incorporated into section .088, more than a finding that a child is in need of aid is required to terminate parental rights. Given this statutory scheme, the state is simply inferring too much from the language of section .011. While certain subsections of AS 47.10.011 implicate the conduct of both parents, once a child has been found to be in need of aid, the state must then prove that the parent whose rights the state wishes to terminate has failed to remedy the conduct underlying the petition and that returning the child to the home would place the child at a substantial risk of physical or mental injury. [23] Contrary to the state's argument, none of these findings could be made against Leslie based on Richard's conduct alone. We conclude that Richard and Leslie's positions were materially adverse. At the time of termination, Leslie had married another man. Leslie testified that she didn't want Richard to have contact with the children because Richard had abused Leslie and sexually assaulted Cynthia. Leslie also testified that she didn't want Richard to have any contact with the children because Richard hit his children and masturbated in front of Cynthia and touched her inappropriately. In her closing argument, Leslie argued for the termination of Richard's rights based on the sexual abuse. Richard, on the other hand, testified that he had never touched Cynthia in a sexual manner. He stated that he was confused when he entered his plea of no contest to the attempted SAM charge. Though he was represented by counsel at those proceedings, Richard testified that he didn't understand what he was pleading to. As Richard maintained that he had not sexually assaulted Cynthia, while Leslie argued that the sexual assault was the main reason in support of the termination of Richard's parental rights, Leslie's interests were materially adverse to Richard's.