Opinion
2012-07-25
In the Matter of ERIC W. (Anonymous). Administration for Children's Services, et al., petitioners-respondents, et al., respondent; Tyisha W. (Anonymous), nonparty-appellant.
Edward E. Caesar, Brooklyn, N.Y., for nonparty-appellant. Michael A. Cardozo, Corporation Counsel, New York, N.Y. (Pamela Seider Dolgow and Dona B. Morris of counsel), for petitioner-respondent Administration for Children's Services.
Edward E. Caesar, Brooklyn, N.Y., for nonparty-appellant. Michael A. Cardozo, Corporation Counsel, New York, N.Y. (Pamela Seider Dolgow and Dona B. Morris of counsel), for petitioner-respondent Administration for Children's Services.
Magovern & Sclafani, New York, N.Y. (Frederick J. Magovern and Joanna M. Roberson of counsel), for petitioner-respondent St. Vincent's Services.
Steven Banks, New York, N.Y. (Tamara A. Steckler and Amy Hausknecht of counsel), attorney for the child.
REINALDO E. RIVERA, J.P., ANITA R. FLORIO, RANDALL T. ENG, and JEFFREY A. COHEN, JJ.
In a child neglect proceeding pursuant to Family Court Act article 10, the nonparty mother appeals from an order of the Family Court, Kings County (Danoff, J.), dated November 17, 2010, which denied her motion, inter alia, to hold the Administration for Children's Services and St. Vincent's Services in civil contempt for failing to timely complete paperwork for implementation of a transfer of custody of the subject child to a nonrelative friend in Virginia pursuant to the Interstate Compact on the Placement of Children.
ORDERED that the order is affirmed, without costs or disbursements.
Shortly after the subject child was born, a proceeding was commenced against his mother alleging that he was neglected by her. The neglect proceeding against the mother was dismissed when she consented to the entry of an order giving custody of the child to her maternal aunt, Toshiba W. Thereafter, this neglect proceeding was commenced against Toshiba W., and the child was placed into foster care through St. Vincent's Services (hereinafter SVS). Meanwhile, the mother moved to Virginia with a nonrelative friend, who petitioned for custody of the child. Since this was an interstate custody request, the Family Court directed the Administration for Children's Services (hereinafterACS), among other things, to commence a review process pursuant to the Interstate Compact on the Placement of Children (hereinafter ICPC). The mother never filed a supplemental petition to modify the order giving custody of the child to Toshiba W. to regain custody of the child.
The mother moved, inter alia, to hold ACS as well as SVS in civil contempt for failing to complete the ICPC in a timely manner. The Family Court denied the motion on the ground that the mother lacked standing to bring the motion. We agree. Contrary to the mother's contention, the Family Court properly determined that she did not have standing to move to hold ACS and SVS in civil contempt. Although Family Court Act § 1035(d) affords a nonrespondent parent the right to intervene in an article 10 neglect proceeding “for the purpose of seeking temporary and permanent custody of the child,” it does not give a nonrespondent parent the right to intervene to argue that a third party should be awarded custody of the child ( see Matter of Tyrone G. v. Fifi N., 189 A.D.2d 8, 17, 594 N.Y.S.2d 224). Here, the mother does not seek to regain custody of the child, and the ICPC which ACS and SVS allegedly failed to complete in a timely manner was necessary solely to facilitate the custody petition of the mother's nonrelative friend. Under these circumstances, Family Court Act § 1035(d) does not confer standing on the mother to move to hold ACS and SVS in civil contempt for their alleged failure to complete the ICPC in a timely manner and for other related relief.