Family Court Award of Sole Custody to Mother Reversed, Sole Custody Awarded to Father

The Second Department reversed Family Court, which awarded sole physical custody to the mother, and awarded sole physical custody to the father:

Here, the Family Court’s award of sole physical custody to the mother lacked a sound and substantial basis in the record. In awarding the mother custody, the Family Court gave undue weight to its finding that the mother would be more likely than the father to foster a meaningful relationship between the subject children and the noncustodial parent. Furthermore, the Family Court failed to give sufficient weight to the forensic mental health evaluation, which indicated that the mother was not suitable for physical custody of the children and to its own finding that it was in the children’s best interests for them to remain away from Sherlock [the mother’s boyfriend] at all times. Under the totality of the circumstances, including the founded concerns with respect to Sherlock and the attendant risk his relationship with the mother posed to the safety and well-being of the subject children, the best interests of the children would be served by awarding the father sole physical custody ….Matter of James AS v Cassandra AS, 2013 NY Slip Op 03995, 2nd Dept, 6-5-13