Court Opinion

ID: 9779446
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-29 21:50:51.604845+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T07:33:26.449863
License: Public Domain

Donald L. Corbin, Chief Judge, dissenting. I agree with the majority that appellant’s consent to the adoption was not required because he failed significantly without just cause to support his children. However, I do not agree that the trial court was correct in finding that the adoption was in the children’s best interest. There is little dispute that appellant has failed miserably to support his minor children. On first blush it appears that appellant seeks to accept the privileges of parenting without accepting the responsibility that goes with it. Even so, failure to support is more properly addressed through contempt proceedings rather than termination of parental rights. The primary consideration in adoption proceedings is the best interest of the child not reward or punishment of the parent. See McKee v. Bates, 10 Ark. App. 51, 661 S.W.2d 415 (1983). The matter before us is not a custody determination. Appellant admits that custody is proper in the appellees. He merely seeks to avoid termination of his relationship with his children. A final decree of adoption has the effect of relieving the natural parent of all rights and terminating all legal relationship between the child and his relatives including the natural parent. Irvan v. Kizer, 286 Ark. 105, 689 S.W.2d 548 (1985). The record in this case bears out the extreme hostility between the adoptive father and the natural father. On at least one occasion, the adoptive father was arrested in connection with an altercation between the two. There is little doubt that because of this hostility, appellant will be denied all contact with his children. More importantly, these young children will not understand the legalities of the adoption proceedings for many years, but will soon find out that their adoptive father can prevent them from seeing their father when they want. The chancellor in his findings stated, “I am convinced that there is a definite affection between Mr. Manuel and his children. I have observed the children in the courtroom previously with Mr. Manuel.... I recognize that these children come from a large family and there is a definite affection on the part of all members of the family for these two children.” However, he held it to be in the children’s best interest to deprive them of this relationship with their father. I cannot agree. They have spent two weekends every month with the appellant since separation and at least two weeks with him each summer. Appellant drives three hours one way to pick them up so that they may spend time with him and he with them. We have said on numerous occasions that the purpose of the statute allowing the father’s consent to be excused for failure to support is to provide a child with a real father instead of one who, by his conduct, has proven to be a father by blood alone. See, e.g., Bemis v. Hare, 19 Ark. App. 198, 718 S.W.2d 481 (1986). Obviously, that is not the case here. The children will be deprived of a relationship with their father which has been developing over their entire lives and should continue to do so. Furthermore, their relationship with their paternal grandmother and half-sibling are irrevocably terminated. The chancellor noted in his findings that the case was a difficult one. Difficult cases should be resolved in favor of the natural relationship. Because our policy has been to favor maintaining the natural relationship when adoption is sought against a natural parent’s protest, Lindsey v. Ketchum, 10 Ark. App. 128, 661 S.W.2d 453 (1983), I would reverse the granting of the petition for adoption under the circumstances in this case. Cooper and Jennings, JJ., join in this dissent.