FATHER’S PETITION FOR A MODIFICATION OF CUSTODY SHOULD NOT HAVE BEEN DENIED WITHOUT A HEARING (THIRD DEPT). ​

The Third Department, reversing Family Court, determined the court should have held a hearing on father’s petition for a modification of custody:

… [T]he father alleged … that, since the prior order, he has relocated to a small, quiet apartment but now has a lengthy commute each way to exercise his parenting time, the child wishes to spend more time with him and the prior order provides him with a limited amount of a parenting time when considering the progress he has made to care for the child. Family Court sua sponte dismissed the father’s petition without prejudice, finding that the father failed to allege a sufficient change in circumstances. The father appeals.

Family Court erred in dismissing the petition without holding a hearing. “A parent seeking to modify a prior order of custody and visitation is required to demonstrate that a change in circumstances has occurred since entry thereof that then warrants the court engaging in an analysis as to the best interests of the child” … . “While not every petition in a Family Ct Act article 6 proceeding is automatically entitled to a hearing” … , “[g]enerally, where a facially sufficient petition has been filed, modification of a Family Ct Act article 6 custody order requires a full and comprehensive hearing at which a parent is to be afforded a full and fair opportunity to be heard” … . Matter of Neil VV. v Joanne WW., 2022 NY Slip Op 03557, Third Dept 6-2-22

Practice Point: Where, as here, a facially sufficient petition for a modification of custody had been filed, petitioner is entitled to a hearing.