Timothy W. v. Julia M.

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Julia M. and Timothy W. married in 2005 and had three children, born in 2006, 2008, and 2010. The couple separated in 2011 and in April 2012 Julia filed for divorce. Julia and Timothy entered into an agreement concerning custody, visitation, and support for their children. The agreement lasted through the fall; in December Timothy requested that Julia’s sole legal custody and primary physical custody be modified. The trial court denied that request because there had been no material change in circumstances. Timothy also sought to have his child support reduced or eliminated. Julia in turn requested that the court impute income to Timothy and increase his child support. Both parties requested changes to Timothy’s visitation schedule. Timothy maintained the trial court was biased against him, and challenged the court’s: (1) denial of his judicial recusal motion; (2) decision to keep certain hearings open to the public; (3) sua sponte admission of evidence during its oral decision on the record; and (4) findings that the father had a history of domestic violence against a “domestic living partner” requiring the court to impose limitations on his visitation. The Alaska Supreme Court affirmed the trial court as to the first three matters, but vacated the visitation order and remanded for further proceedings, specifically, for findings on whether the acts of domestic violence occurred while a domestic living partnership was in effect. View "Timothy W. v. Julia M." on Justia Law