Summary
The Wyoming Supreme Court affirmed the district court's denial of a stepfather's petition to adopt two children without the biological father's consent. The court held that the stepfather failed to meet his burden of proving by clear and convincing evidence that the father willfully failed to pay child support, which is required under Wyoming statute to dispense with parental consent for adoption. Additionally, the court declined to address the stepfather's arguments regarding res judicata and judicial notice due to deficiencies in the appellate record.
Topics
Practice areas
Questions Presented
- Did the court err when it did not terminate the respondent's parental rights?
- Did the court err when it did not take judicial notice of the previous court's findings?
Holdings
- The district court did not err; the father’s failure to pay was not willful, so the adoption petition was properly denied.
- The appellate court is not required to take judicial notice of documents not included in the record; the appellant bears the burden of presenting a sufficient record.
- The district court did not err; because the father’s failure to pay was not willful, termination of parental rights was not warranted.
Key quotations
“Incarceration, standing alone, does not provide the direct intent necessary to constitute willful failure to pay under the pertinent statute.” (¶ 14)
“A parent must always pay child support according to his or her financial ability.” (¶ 15)
Factual background
CJ, the stepfather, filed a petition to adopt his stepchildren after the biological father, SA, repeatedly failed to pay court‑ordered child support. SA admitted non‑payment but claimed inability to pay due to intermittent incarceration and unemployment. The district court found SA's failure was not willful and denied the adoption petition.
Procedural history
The district court denied CJ's petition to adopt his stepchildren because he failed to prove by clear and convincing evidence that the biological father, SA, willfully failed to pay child support. CJ appealed the denial.