Opinion ID: 1819502
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: whether allowing mother to participate as a party in father's dispositional hearing under the fact situation of this case was prejudicial error.

Text: According to the rules of civil procedure, in order to participate as a party in a legal action, it is necessary for a person or entity to have a legal interest to assert or protect in connection with the matter at bar. 59 Am.Jur.2d Parties § 30 (1987). Due to the fact that mother's parental rights had been terminated prior to father's dispositional hearing, she was not a party because she had no legal rights to assert or protect at the dispositional hearing. Certainly, there is nothing that would have prevented her from participating as a witness had she appeared in person and had relevant testimony to offer concerning the welfare of the child or the capacity of father to take care of the child's needs. However, the query presented to us is whether the trial court erred by allowing mother to appear as a party through counsel at father's dispositional hearing. In two recent cases, Justice Henderson, writing for the majority of this court, pointed out that the rules of civil procedure are to be used in all dependency and neglect adjudicatory hearings, but all other hearings under SDCL Chapter 26-8 (which would include a juvenile dispositional hearing) ... shall be conducted under such rules and regulations as the court may prescribe and designed to inform the court fully as to the exact status of the child and to ascertain its history and environment and the past and present physical, mental, and moral conditions of the child, and of its parents.... Matter of C.J.H., 371 N.W. 2d 345, 350 (S.D.1985); People ex rel G.H., 390 N.W.2d 54 (1986); SDCL 26-8-30. Consequently, the trial court did not exceed the latitude it has in dispositional hearings by allowing a non-party to appear through counsel if it did so in making its final determination as to disposition to be best informed about the welfare and conditions of the child or parent. In this case, mother's attorney appeared and was allowed to ask questions along with the state's attorney and the attorney for the child. The questions he posed were on the subject matters that were also covered by the other two attorneys or no doubt would have been covered had they not been asked by mother's attorney. The information elicited led directly to father's qualifications to be a parent. The criminal records and the family background studies used by mother's attorney to ask questions of father were certainly pertinent to the trial court's need to acquire information in order to make its final determination as to disposition. However, because the state was represented by the state's attorney at the hearing, and the child was being represented by his own court-appointed attorney, there exists no apparent need on the face of the record for the trial court to allow mother's counsel to participate in this hearing. But even if there was no reason for mother's counsel to appear, the question is not Was there error? but Was there prejudicial error? The basic rule is that the burden is on the appellant to show not only error but prejudicial error. Ryken v. Blumer, 307 N.W.2d 865 (S.D.1981); citing Lytle v. Morgan, 270 N.W.2d 359, 362 (S.D.1978). Prejudicial error is that which in all probability must have produced some effect upon the final result and affected the rights of the party assigning it. K & E Land & Cattle, Inc. v. Mayer, 330 N.W.2d 529, 533 (S.D.1983). See also Koupal & Anton, Inc. v. Wieczorek, 375 N.W.2d 639 (S.D. 1985); Wang v. Wang, 393 N.W.2d 771 (S.D.1986); People in Interest of H.L., Jr., 386 N.W.2d 495 (S.D.1986); Matter of S.L., 349 N.W.2d 428 (S.D.1984); and Dwyer v. Christensen, 77 S.D. 381, 92 N.W.2d 199 (1958). From the information stated above, the court has concluded that the father has not shown prejudicial error and a substantial likelihood that a different result would have been reached had mother's attorney not been allowed to participate in this litigation, even if the trial court had no basis to allow a non-party to participate through counsel. Therefore, it is the conclusion of this court that the father's argument that the trial court committed prejudicial error in allowing mother's attorney to participate as applied to this situation is without merit.