Misyura v. Misyura
242 P.3d 1037
| Alaska | 2010Background
- Sergey and Lyudmila Misyura divorce dispute over three children; they resided in Fairbanks, Alaska.
- Trial court found a history of domestic violence by Sergey against Lyudmila and applied AS 25.24.150(g) presumption against awarding him custody, awarding Lyudmila sole custody.
- Court allowed Sergey unsupervised visits in Lyudmila's discretion, with potential supervision if Lyudmila found harm to the children, and allowed conditioning visits on Sergey's participation in an intervention program for batterers.
- A prior magistrate issued a long-term protective order after alleged incidents, and Lyudmila secured a domestic violence protective order with findings of violence.
- Sergey appealed contending no qualifying history of domestic violence, lack of basis for denying overnight visits, and improper delegation of visitation conditions to Lyudmila.
- Supreme Court affirmed custody ruling but reversed and remanded the visitation order for improper delegation of batterers’ intervention conditioning.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Did the court properly apply AS 25.24.150(g) presumption? | Sergey: no qualifying history of domestic violence. | Lyudmila: trial findings establish history; presumption binds custody decision. | Presumption applied; history not clearly erroneous. |
| Was there a basis to deny Sergey overnight visits? | Sergey: dispute not addressed; no basis shown. | Lyudmila: not reached on the issue; visitation discussed under j. | Court did not reach the issue of overnight visitation in this decision. |
| Did the court improperly delegate visitation decisions to Lyudmila? | Sergey: court, not Lyudmila, must decide visitation conditions. | Lyudmila: trial court delegated authority for visitation conditions. | Yes, delegation to Lyudmila was error; remand for court to decide conditions. |
Key Cases Cited
- Thomas v. Thomas, 171 P.3d 98 (Alaska 2007) (standard for reviewing custody and deference to trial findings)
- Elton H. v. Naomi R., 119 P.3d 969 (Alaska 2005) (factors for abuse history and custody presumption framework)
- Michele M. v. Richard R., 177 P.3d 830 (Alaska 2008) (test for overcoming presumption when history of domestic violence is found)
- Ebertz v. Ebertz, 113 P.3d 643 (Alaska 2005) (particular deference to trial court's credibility findings)
- Borg-Warner Corp. v. Avco Corp. (Lycoming Div.), 850 P.2d 628 (Alaska 1993) (collateral estoppel doctrine framework and discretion)