Court Opinion

ID: 9913005
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-12-26 17:02:21.648657+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T13:06:44.972733
License: Public Domain

NOTICE: NOT FOR OFFICIAL PUBLICATION.
 UNDER ARIZONA RULE OF THE SUPREME COURT 111(c), THIS DECISION IS NOT PRECEDENTIAL
                 AND MAY BE CITED ONLY AS AUTHORIZED BY RULE.

                                    IN THE
             ARIZONA COURT OF APPEALS
                                DIVISION ONE

                              In re the Matter of:

               NICHOLAS KRAKANA, Petitioner/Appellant,

                                        v.

                SUSANNA HADDEN, Respondent/Appellee.

                           No. 1 CA-CV 23-0222 FC
                              FILED 12-26-2023

           Appeal from the Superior Court in Maricopa County
                           No. FC2016-050246
                           No. FC2017-003246
                   The Honorable James Knapp, Judge

                                  AFFIRMED

                                   COUNSEL

Nicholas Krakana, Scottsdale
Petitioner/Appellant

Susanna Hadden, Scottsdale
Respondent/Appellee
                          KRAKANA v. HADDEN
                           Decision of the Court

                      MEMORANDUM DECISION

Judge Paul J. McMurdie delivered the Court’s decision, in which Presiding
Judge D. Steven Williams and Judge Samuel A. Thumma joined.

M c M U R D I E, Judge:

¶1            Nicholas Krakana (“Father”) appeals the superior court’s
January 2023 legal decision-making and parenting-time orders and the
February 2023 child support order. He also appeals the attorney’s fees
granted in the January 2023 order and requests that this decision be sealed.
We affirm the superior court’s orders and decline to file this decision under
seal.

             FACTS AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND

¶2              Susanna Hadden (“Mother”) and Father are the parents of
two minor children, born in 2007 (“Son”) and 2009 (“Daughter”). The
parties were never married. In April 2016, Father petitioned to establish
legal decision-making and parenting time. The court granted Mother sole
legal decision-making authority. And it granted Father no parenting time
because of a protective order against him naming the children as protected
parties. Later, the court placed the case on the inactive calendar so a
dependency petition could be filed. When the parties failed to move to set
a trial, the court dismissed the case.

¶3             In January 2017, Father re-petitioned to establish paternity,
legal decision-making, parenting time, and child support. The court held a
trial on the petition in August 2017. In its judgment (“2017 order”), the court
ordered joint legal decision-making authority and parenting time and that
Father pay Mother $434 monthly in child support. The court also directed
the parties to engage in intensive counseling. It agreed with a court’s
previous ruling that “the parents continue to fixate on vindicating
themselves regardless of the suffering their children will experience in the
process.” (Emphasis omitted.)

¶4            Father moved for a new trial or an amended judgment. The
court denied the motion, and Father appealed. This court affirmed the 2017

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order in Krakana v. Haass, 1 CA-CV 17-0747, 2018 WL 5019473 (Ariz. App.
Oct. 11, 2018) (mem. decision).

¶5           Within three years of the August 2017 order, Father petitioned
to modify the order four times. The superior court denied all four petitions.

¶6             In October 2021, the superior court granted a protective order
against Father because of an incident involving Father and the minor
children. In the petition, Mother alleged that Father believed Daughter
reported to the police that Father had shoplifted. When Father learned of
Daughter’s remarks, he went to the children’s school and withdrew the
children from their classes. He brought them to a room and accused
Daughter of “try[ing] to get [him] in trouble with the police” and of being
“sick,” “evil,” “malicious,” and “sociopath[ic].” The petition alleged that
Father scolded Daughter,

      If you do this to anybody else in your life that you – that you
      get their trust and you gain their trust and you turn on them
      like that – don’t be surprised if they lash out at you. ‘Kay?
      Especially if it’s a guy and they get physical – I wouldn’t be
      surprised because if you were in a relationship with
      somebody and you turned on somebody like this – they
      would knock your head off your shoulders.

Father requested a hearing on the petition, which the superior court held.
After hearing testimony from both parties, the court affirmed the protective
order. And the court noted that Father’s behavior was “reprehensible,
abusive, threatening, and intimidating.”

¶7           Soon after, Mother petitioned to modify legal
decision-making authority, parenting time, and child support. In the
petition, Mother alleged that Father was refusing to participate in the legal
decision-making process, engaging in child abuse and parental alienation,
and not fully exercising his parenting time. She requested sole legal
decision-making authority, designation as the primary residential parent
with Father to have limited, supervised parenting time, and a modified
child support award.

¶8            The superior court held an evidentiary hearing on Mother’s
petition. In January 2023, the court entered its judgment (“January 2023
order”). After analyzing the best interest factors under A.R.S. §§ 25-403(A),
25-403.01(B), and 25-403.03, the court awarded Mother sole legal
decision-making and designated her as the children’s primary residential
parent. It awarded Father parenting time with Son every other weekend

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                           Decision of the Court

and with Daughter every other Saturday between 10:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m.
The court designated the parenting plan for Daughter as an interim plan
that the court could amend after Father and Daughter completed the Court
Ordered Behavioral Interventionist (“interventionist”) process. Because
Father declined to participate in the interventionist process, the court later
ordered the interim parenting plan to remain in place. Father moved for
reconsideration of this order, but the court denied it.

¶9            The court found that Father had “failed to respond to
inquiries from Mother on issues that are important to the children’s health,
well-being, and happiness” and exercised very little parenting time in 2019,
2020, and 2021. It emphasized that the protective order against Father was
affirmed after a contested hearing and that Father expressed no regret about
the events leading to it. It also found that Father did not exercise supervised
parenting time after the protective order expired in November 2022. For
these reasons and others, the court found that Father failed to rebut the
presumption that an award of sole or joint decision-making authority to the
parent who committed the act of domestic violence conflicted with the
child’s best interests. See A.R.S. § 25-403.03(D), (E). Finally, the court
granted Mother’s request for attorney’s fees after finding that Father had
“considerably more resources available” and “acted unreasonably in the
litigation.”

¶10            In February 2023, the superior court ordered Father to pay
Mother $1,165 monthly in child support (“February 2023 order”). It
acknowledged its January 2023 finding that the parties presented
“insufficient evidence to make proper findings about Mother’s and Father’s
income.” Still, it stated it must determine child support when modifying
parenting time.

¶11          Father moved to reconsider the court’s January 2023 order
and for a new trial or an amended judgment on the February 2023 order.
The court denied both motions. Father appealed both orders, and we have
jurisdiction under A.R.S. §§ 12-120.21(A)(1), 12-2101(A)(1), and
12-2101(A)(2).

                               DISCUSSION

A.   The Superior Court Did Not Abuse Its Discretion by Granting
Mother Sole Legal Decision-Making Authority.

¶12           We review an award of legal decision-making and parenting
time for an abuse of discretion. Olesen v. Daniel, 251 Ariz. 25, 29, ¶ 14 (App.

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2021); DeLuna v. Petitto, 247 Ariz. 420, 423, ¶ 9 (App. 2019). A.R.S.
§ 25-403.03(D) provides:

      If the court determines that a parent who is seeking sole or
      joint legal decision-making has committed an act of domestic
      violence against the other parent, there is a rebuttable
      presumption that an award of sole or joint legal
      decision-making to the parent who committed the act of
      domestic violence is contrary to the child’s best interests. This
      presumption does not apply if both parents have committed an act
      of domestic violence.

(Emphasis added.) Father argues that Mother also engaged in domestic
violence, and so the superior court erred by applying A.R.S.
§ 25-403.03(D)’s presumption. To support his argument, Father points to
the 2016 protective order entered against Mother and the superior court’s
finding in the 2017 parenting order that both parties engaged in domestic
violence.

¶13           But the 2017 finding is not pertinent to Mother’s 2021
modification petition. When considering a modification petition, the court
considers whether there has been “a material change of the circumstances
affecting the child’s welfare since the last court order.” Backstrand v.
Backstrand, 250 Ariz. 339, 341, ¶ 1 (App. 2020). Thus, the January 2023 order
at issue contemplates the material changes after the 2017 order and the
current status of the children and parties. See id. At the 2022 evidentiary
hearing, Father did not present testimony on new domestic violence
allegations against Mother. Rather, the relevant material change after the
2017 order is the 2021 protective order against Father and the
corresponding contested hearing when the court found Father committed
domestic violence. Based on this incident and finding, Mother alleged in
her modification petition that Father committed domestic violence. The
January 2023 order thus correctly found that “the presumption applies
because [Father] committed at least one act of domestic violence against
[Mother], and [Mother] has not committed domestic violence.” See A.R.S.
§ 25-403.03(D).

¶14           Father also argues that the court erred by precluding Dr.
Phipps-Yonas’s affidavit and curriculum vitae, which he asserts would
have undermined the protective order against him. The court precluded Dr.
Phipps-Yonas’s expert testimony before the evidentiary hearing. Then,
Father tried to introduce Dr. Phipps-Yonas’s affidavit and CV at the
hearing, but the court declined to admit the exhibits.

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                            Decision of the Court

¶15             Without an abuse of discretion, we will not second-guess the
superior court’s ruling on the admissibility or relevance of evidence. State
v. Spreitz, 190 Ariz. 129, 146 (1997). As the superior court detailed in its order
denying Father’s motion to reconsider the evidentiary exclusion, the
“testimony by that proposed expert infringes on the finder of fact . . . [i]t is
for the Court to determine whether or not there has been abuse or neglect.”
Father does not provide legal authority to support his contention that the
evidence must be admitted. See ARCAP 13(a)(7) (An argument must
contain “supporting reasons for each contention . . . with citations of legal
authorities.”). And more importantly, issue preclusion applies to bar
relitigation over a prior court finding of domestic violence. See Olesen, 251
Ariz. at 30, ¶ 20.

¶16            Lastly, Father argues that the superior court erred by granting
Mother sole legal decision-making when the parties’ children are doing
poorly in school. Father specifically objects to the superior court “skip[ping]
over that issue in its ruling[.]” But in conducting the best interest analysis
under A.R.S. § 25-403, the superior court documented Father’s “concern
that [the children] aren’t doing well in school currently[.]” At the same time,
the superior court also found, among other things, that Father has exercised
very little parenting time in the last few years, withheld permission for
Daughter’s counseling, and engaged in domestic violence. Because the
court made “specific findings on the record about all relevant factors and
the reasons for which the decision is in the best interests of the child[ren,]”
and the record supports those findings, it did not abuse its discretion by
granting Mother sole legal decision-making authority. See A.R.S.
§ 25-403(B); cf. Hart v. Hart, 220 Ariz. 183, 186, ¶ 9 (App. 2009).

B.   The Superior Court Did Not Abuse Its Discretion by Granting
Mother and Father Unequal Parenting Time.

¶17            Father argues that the January 2023 order improperly
restricted his parenting time because he cannot pay for the interventionist
process that the court ordered before his parenting time with Daughter
could increase. Father contends he “was crystal clear that the reason he
could not proceed [with the interventionist] was purely financial.”

¶18           The superior court “may order parties to engage in behavioral
or mental health services, including counseling and therapeutic
interventions,” but it “must determine on the record whether the parties
have the ability to pay for services.” Ariz. R. Fam. Law P. 95(a), (b). On
appeal, “[w]e will accept the court’s factual findings as true unless they are
clearly erroneous.” Gish v. Greyson, 253 Ariz. 437, 444, ¶ 31 (App. 2022).

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                          KRAKANA v. HADDEN
                           Decision of the Court

¶19            Here, the superior court determined that “Father did not
provide accurate information about his income and expenses,” but stated,
“the [c]ourt nevertheless finds based on the testimony on 12/12/2022
regarding Father’s available resources that Father can afford to pay for a[n]
[interventionist].” On appeal, Father does not cite to record evidence that
the court’s finding of his ability to pay was “clearly erroneous.” See Gish,
253 Ariz. at 444, ¶ 31. Thus, he fails to show that the court abused its
discretion when it ordered his parenting time to be limited until the
interventionist process was completed.

¶20           Father also argues that the order hurts the parent-child
relationship and thus improperly infringes on his parental rights. He
misreads the January 2023 Order to guarantee “substantial, frequent,
meaningful and continuing contact” with both children and argues that the
parenting time order contradicts this guarantee. But the court only ensured
this contact with Son. As for Daughter, the court specifically found:

       [P]arenting time that ensures [Father] will have substantial,
       frequent, meaningful, and continuing contact with
       [Daughter] would endanger the child’s physical, mental,
       moral or emotional health because Father and [Daughter]
       have been estranged since the 10/18/2021 incident, and
       [Daughter] currently states that she wants no parenting time
       with Father. The Court finds, however, that it would not be in
       the best interest of [Daughter] to cut Father out of her life. It
       is in the best interest of [Daughter] and Father to work on
       their relationship through therapy.

Because the superior court made specific best-interest findings about
parenting time supported by the record, and Father does not contradict
those findings, it did not err. See A.R.S. § 25-403(B); see also Hart, 220 Ariz.
at 186, ¶ 9.

C.    The Superior Court Did Not Abuse Its Discretion by Modifying
the Child Support Order.

¶21           “The decision to modify an award of child support rests
within the sound discretion of the trial court and, absent an abuse of that
discretion, will not be disturbed on appeal.” Nia v. Nia, 242 Ariz. 419, 422,
¶ 7 (App. 2017) (citing Little v. Little, 193 Ariz. 518, 520, ¶ 5 (1999)).

¶22          Father argues that no change in circumstances warranted the
February 2023 order’s new child support amount. Mother responds that the
changes in the children’s ages and parenting time support the new amount.

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                          KRAKANA v. HADDEN
                           Decision of the Court

We agree with Mother. Because the superior court granted Mother’s
petition to modify parenting time, “it was required to address child
support.” Heidbreder v. Heidbreder, 230 Ariz. 377, 379-80, ¶ 7 (App. 2012).
And when it did, there was an increase in the children’s ages and in
Mothers’ parenting time from the 2017 child support order. Those changes
are reflected in the February 2023 order.

¶23           Father contends the court erred by not considering Mother’s
home value when calculating her income. He states, “[s]ince the trial court
is using Appellants home as a gage for child support obligations based on
rental income, it would be prudent for the trial court to take into
consideration Appellee’s housing situation.” But the child support
guidelines provide that income may include various monetary sources, like
recurring gifts. See A.R.S. § 25-320 app. (“Guidelines”) § II.A.1.b. Father’s
argument fails to acknowledge that the superior court considered his
theoretical rent as income because he lives in a rent-free house, a recurring
gift from his mother. But there was record evidence that Mother pays rent,
so it would have been error to attribute her housing as income. The superior
court based Mother’s income on her reported commissions and bonuses
and attributed her a minimum-wage salary. The record supports these
figures.

¶24           The superior court did not abuse its discretion when
calculating the parties’ incomes and ordering Father to pay $1,165 monthly
in child support.

D.   The Superior Court Did Not Abuse Its Discretion by Granting
Mother Attorney’s Fees.

¶25           After the superior court considers the parties’ financial
resources and the reasonableness of their positions, it has the discretion to
award attorney’s fees. See A.R.S. § 25-324(A); Ferrill v. Ferrill, 253 Ariz. 393,
399, ¶ 25 (App. 2022). We review an attorney’s fees award under A.R.S.
§ 25-324 for an abuse of discretion and reverse only when clearly erroneous.
Hefner v. Hefner, 248 Ariz. 54, 57, ¶ 6 (App. 2019) (cleaned up).

¶26            Father argues the superior court abused its discretion when it
awarded Mother attorney’s fees in the January 2023 order. The court
granted this award in part because it found that Father “acted unreasonably
in the litigation” by seeking relocation of the children to California. But
Father asserts he acted in good faith. He argues on appeal that relocation
would benefit the children because “[l]iving in Newport Beach, CA in a
single-family home attending Corona del Mar High School in itself is a

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                            Decision of the Court

dream for any child or adult.” But Father “provided no [trial] evidence to
explain, e.g., how a relocation would improve any of their lives, or how it
would allow parenting time for Mother.”

¶27           The superior court also based its award of attorney’s fees on
Father’s greater financial resources, spiteful litigation, and untrustworthy
testimony. And Father does not dispute these findings. Thus, Father has
failed to show the court abused its discretion by awarding Mother her
attorney’s fees.

E.     Father Has Shown No Grounds to Seal this Decision.

¶28           Father requests that this court seal its decision for his
children’s well-being. Mother “does not object to the sealing of the
documents, but questions the motive.” “With very few exceptions, all
decisions this Court issues are a matter of public record.” Court of Appeals,
Division One, Policies, available at https://www.azcourts.gov/coa1/Filer-
Information/Policies. Because Father failed to articulate an applicable
exception to the court’s policy, we decline to file this case under seal.

F.     We Deny Mother’s Request for Attorney’s Fees on Appeal.

¶29           Mother argues Father unreasonably contests the superior
court’s rulings and requests attorney’s fees under A.R.S. §§ 12-349, 25-324,
and ARCAP 21. Because counsel does not represent Mother, we deny her
fee request. As the prevailing party, she is entitled to costs upon compliance
with ARCAP 21.

                                CONCLUSION

¶30           We affirm.

                           AMY M. WOOD • Clerk of the Court
                           FILED: TM

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