State ex rel. State, Department of Social Services, Family Support Division v. Campbell
2012 Mo. App. LEXIS 1509
Mo. Ct. App.2012Background
- State seeks a permanent writ of prohibition to block an order directing the State to advance genetic paternity testing costs in a 210.854 petition.
- Fields filed a petition to set aside judgments of paternity from 1997 and 2000 in Jackson County, Missouri in December 2011.
- Respondent ordered testing for the minor children on July 12, 2012, directing the State to advance costs, with final payment to be determined later.
- The order identified Fields as petitioner and the named respondents included FSD, though the State was ordered to pay testing costs.
- FSD filed a writ of prohibition; the court stayed enforcement except for potential modification by Respondent, and a preliminary writ was issued and is made absolute.
- Statutory framework: Section 210.854 requires petitioner to pay testing costs; the court may order blood tests under 210.834, but 210.854 costs provisions are not applicable to actions to set aside a preexisting paternity judgment.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Who must bear genetic testing costs under 210.854.3? | Fields must pay; statute unambiguously assigns costs to petitioner. | State may be obligated to pay as indigent or under 514.040, and cannot be required to pay. | State cannot be required to advance costs; petitioner must bear testing costs. |
| Does indigent status change who pays the testing costs under 210.854? | Fields is indigent and should not bear costs; in forma pauperis status shields him from fees. | Indigence does not authorize shifting costs to the State under these provisions. | Indigence does not authorize the State to advance or incur the costs; State cannot pay. |
| Can 210.834 blood-test provisions justify shifting costs to the State in 210.854 proceedings? | Blood test processes under 210.834 may shift costs to State in certain actions. | 210.834 does not apply to 210.854 proceedings seeking to set aside judgments. | 210.834 does not authorize shifting costs to the State in 210.854 proceedings. |
Key Cases Cited
- Richardson v. State Highway & Transp. Com’n, 863 S.W.2d 876 (Mo. banc 1993) (sovereign immunity cannot be avoided without explicit legislative authority on costs)
- State ex rel. Igoe v. Bradford, 611 S.W.2d 343 (Mo. App. 1980) (express statutory limits on cost-shifting against the state)
- Holterman v. Patterson, 24 S.W.3d 784 (Mo. App. E.D. 2000) (indigency certification and GAL fees; limitations on shifting costs)
- Taylor v. Clymer, 503 S.W.2d 53 (Mo. Ct. App. K.C.1973) (principles on who pays costs when a right exists and enforcement requires essential means)
- Carpenter v. Carpenter, 159 S.W.3d 880 (Mo. App. S.D. 2005) (county treasury obligations for indigent litigants' costs and GAL fees)
- State ex rel. Henderson v. Blaeuer, 723 S.W.2d 589 (Mo. App. W.D. 1987) (county obligation to pay indigent's GAL fees in dissolution actions)
- State ex rel. Martin v. Wofford, 25 S.W. 851 (Mo. 1894) (ancillary authorities on rights and enforcement in context of indigency)