Danny R. Dunn v. Caryn A. Dunn

• Court: Court of Appeals of Georgia
• Decided: November 6, 2025
• Docket: A26D0152
• Status: Published

Opinion

Court of Appeals of the State of Georgia ATLANTA,____________________ November 06, 2025

The Court of Appeals hereby passes the following order:

A26D0152. DANNY R. DUNN v. CARYN A. DUNN.

In this domestic relations matter, the superior court entered an order on Danny R. Dunn’s motion to modify custody and visitation and Caryn A. Dunn’s counter motion for contempt of the parties’ divorce decree. In the order, the superior court modified the parties’ existing plan for visitation with their minor children by requiring Danny’s visitation to be supervised by his parents, and finding him in contempt. Danny has filed a timely application for discretionary review, seeking to appeal the modification of his visitation with his children and the rulings holding him in contempt. Ordinarily, appeals of orders in domestic relations cases must be initiated by filing an application for discretionary appeal. See OCGA § 5-6-35 (a) (2), (b). Under OCGA § 5-6-34 (a) (11), however, direct appeals are permitted from “[a]ll judgments or orders in child custody cases awarding, refusing to change, or modifying child custody or holding or declining to hold persons in contempt of such child custody judgment or orders.” And visitation rights are a part of custody. Vines v. Vines, 292 Ga. 550, 551 (2) (739 SE2d 374) (2013). Thus, the order Danny seeks to appeal is directly appealable. Under OCGA § 5-6-35 (j), this Court will grant a timely application for discretionary review if the lower court’s order is subject to direct appeal. See City of Rincon v. Couch, 272 Ga. App. 411, 412 (612 SE2d 596) (2005). Accordingly, this application is hereby GRANTED. Danny shall have ten days from the date of this order to file a notice of appeal in the superior court. See OCGA § 5-6-35 (g). If Danny already has filed a notice of appeal in the superior court, then he need not file a second notice. The clerk of the superior court is DIRECTED to include a copy of this order in the record transmitted to the Court of Appeals.

Court of Appeals of the State of Georgia Clerk’s Office, Atlanta,____________________ 11/06/2025 I certify that the above is a true extract from the minutes of the Court of Appeals of Georgia. Witness my signature and the seal of said court hereto affixed the day and year last above written.

, Clerk.