Buckley v. Kleinahans

• Decision Date: 08 June 2018
• Docket Number: 670,CAF 17–01332
• Citation: 162 A.D.3d 1561,78 N.Y.S.3d 569
• Parties: In the Matter of Michael J. BUCKLEY, Petitioner–Appellant, v. Jacquelyn KLEINAHANS, Respondent–Respondent.
• Court: New York Supreme Court — Appellate Division

162 A.D.3d 1561
78 N.Y.S.3d 569

In the Matter of Michael J. BUCKLEY, Petitioner–Appellant,
v.
Jacquelyn KLEINAHANS, Respondent–Respondent.

670
CAF 17–01332

Supreme Court, Appellate Division, Fourth Department, New York.

Entered: June 8, 2018

78 N.Y.S.3d 570

AMDURSKY, PELKY, FENNELL & WALLEN, P.C., OSWEGO (COURTNEY S. RADICK OF COUNSEL), FOR PETITIONER–APPELLANT.

DAVIS LAW OFFICE PLLC, OSWEGO (STEPHANIE N. DAVIS OF COUNSEL), FOR RESPONDENT–RESPONDENT.

SAMUEL J. SUGAR, FULTON, ATTORNEY FOR THE CHILDREN.

PRESENT: SMITH, J.P., CARNI, DEJOSEPH, NEMOYER, AND CURRAN, JJ.

MEMORANDUM AND ORDER

Appeal from an order of the Family Court, Oswego County (Thomas Benedetto, R.), entered July 14, 2017 in a proceeding pursuant to Family Court Act article 6. The order, among other things, awarded respondent sole legal and physical custody of the subject children.

It is hereby ORDERED that the order so appealed from is unanimously affirmed without costs.

Memorandum: Petitioner father appeals from an order that, inter alia, awarded respondent mother sole legal and physical custody of the parties' two children. We reject the father's contention that Family Court's determination is not supported by a sound and substantial basis in the record. In making an initial custody determination, the court is "required to consider the best interests of the child by reviewing such factors as ‘maintaining stability for the child, ... the home environment with each parent, each parent's past performance, relative fitness, ability to guide and provide for the child's overall well-being, and the willingness of each parent to foster a relationship with the other parent’ "( Kaczor v. Kaczor, 12 A.D.3d 956, 958, 785 N.Y.S.2d 573 [3d Dept. 2004] ; see Matter of Chilbert v. Soler, 77 A.D.3d 1405, 1406, 907 N.Y.S.2d 757 [4th Dept. 2010], lv denied 16 N.Y.3d 701, 917 N.Y.S.2d 108, 942 N.E.2d 319 [2011] ). We agree with the court that those factors weigh in the mother's favor, especially with respect to the last factor, and thus the court's determination that it is in the children's...