In the Matter of the Adoption of A.M.C.; Paul Vick v. Dennis and Lois Cecil

Summary

The Arkansas Supreme Court affirmed an adoption decree granting Dennis Cecil's petition to adopt A.M.C. without Paul Vick's consent. The court held that the Indian Child Welfare Act did not apply because the Lower Muskogee Creek Tribe was not federally recognized, and that Vick's consent was unnecessary because he had failed significantly, without justifiable cause, to support the child for more than one year. The court also upheld the finding that the adoption was in A.M.C.'s best interest.

Holdings

1. The ICWA did not apply because A.M.C. was not an Indian child under the Act: although she was a registered member of the Lower Muskogee Creek Tribe, that tribe was not federally recognized, and there was no evidence that she was a member of or eligible for membership in a federally recognized tribe. Consequently, the heightened proof and expert-testimony requirements of 25 U.S.C. § 1912(f) did not apply.
2. Vick's consent was not required because he failed significantly, without justifiable cause, to provide support for A.M.C. for a period exceeding one year.
3. The circuit court did not clearly err in finding that adoption by Dennis and Lois was in A.M.C.'s best interest.

Questions Presented

1. Whether the Indian Child Welfare Act applied to the adoption proceeding involving A.M.C.
2. Whether Vick's consent to the adoption was unnecessary because he had significantly failed, without justifiable cause, to provide support for A.M.C. for at least one year.
3. Whether the adoption was in A.M.C.'s best interest.

Disposition

affirmed