Alyssa Diane Sjothun v. Matthew Peterson, et al.

Summary

The United States District Court for the Southern District of Alabama denied Alyssa Diane Sjothun’s request for an emergency preliminary injunction seeking a change in custody of her children from the Baldwin County Department of Human Resources to a relative. The court held that Sjothun could not represent her children pro se and failed to establish the requirements for preliminary injunctive relief on her own behalf. The court also noted that the passage of more than a year since the children’s placement undermined the claimed emergency.

Holdings

1. A non-attorney parent may not proceed pro se on behalf of her children in federal court.
2. Sjothun was not entitled to a preliminary injunction because she failed to establish the required prerequisites, including a substantial likelihood of success on the merits, a substantial threat of irreparable injury, a favorable balance of harms, and that the injunction would not disserve the public interest.

Questions Presented

1. Whether a non-attorney parent may represent her minor children pro se in federal court when seeking injunctive relief on their behalf.
2. Whether Sjothun was entitled to a preliminary injunction changing the custody placement of her children.

Disposition

other