In Re Adoption of RLM

156 P.3d 940
CourtCourt of Appeals of Washington
DecidedApril 30, 2007
Docket57557-1-I
StatusPublished
Cited by4 cases

This text of 156 P.3d 940 (In Re Adoption of RLM) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Washington primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
In Re Adoption of RLM, 156 P.3d 940 (Wash. Ct. App. 2007).

Opinion

156 P.3d 940 (2007)

In the Matter of the ADOPTION OF R.L.M., a minor, DOB: 10/18/99.
Monesa Sunderland, Appellant,
v.
State of Washington, Department of Social and Health Services, and Adoptive Parents, Respondents.

No. 57557-1-I.

Court of Appeals of Washington, Division 1.

April 30, 2007.

*941 Leonard J. Feldman, Matthew Aaron Carvalho, Heller Ehrman LLP, Seattle, WA, for Appellant.

Monesa Sunderland, Everett, WA, (Appearing Pro Se).

Christian Williams, Attorney Generals Office, Seattle, WA, Michael Scott Majors, Office of Attorney General, Everett, WA, for Respondents.

Kirsten Jensen Haugen, Everett, for Minor.

Linda Eileen Passey, Law Office of Linda Passey, Marysville, for Other Parties.

AGID, J.

¶ 1 R.L.M. is a seven year old girl. Monesa Sunderland is her paternal aunt. When R.L.M. was four years old, the Department of Social and Health Services (DSHS) removed her from her parents and placed her with Sunderland. DSHS later removed R.L.M. from Sunderland because of her drug use and placed the child with a foster-adopt family. Sunderland completed a drug recovery program and parenting classes and sought to adopt R.L.M.R.L.M.'s foster parents also petitioned for adoption. Sunderland was given only three hours notice of the competing adoption hearing and neither she nor her attorney could attend the hearing. An associate of her attorney asked that Sunderland be given an opportunity to present evidence that it was in R.L.M.'s best interests to be adopted by her rather than the foster parents. The superior court denied this request and granted the other adoption petition. Sunderland argues that the court erred by denying her right to notice and a hearing and by denying permissive intervention under CR 24(b). We hold that Sunderland had no statutory or due process right to notice and a hearing because she was not R.L.M.'s parent, legal guardian, or de facto parent. We decline to consider Sunderland's permissive intervention argument because a mere procedural error is an insufficient basis for challenging a finalized adoption decree under RCW 26.33.260(3).

FACTS

¶ 2 R.L.M. was born on October 18, 1999. DSHS removed her from her mother based on allegations of drug use and neglect. At the time, her father was incarcerated on drug charges. Monesa Sunderland is R.L.M.'s paternal aunt and claims she helped to raise the child from birth. In March 2004, DSHS placed R.L.M. with Sunderland after removing her from her mother. On February 22, 2005, R.L.M.'s parents' parental rights were terminated, and DSHS became her legal guardian. Around January 2005, Sunderland began using methamphetamine after she and her longtime partner separated. When DSHS found out about the drug use, it required her to sign an agreement to stop using drugs and submit to random drug testing. She signed the agreement, but later tested positive for drugs. On March 1, 2005, DSHS removed R.L.M. from Sunderland because of her drug use and placed R.L.M. with a foster-adopt family. Sunderland immediately entered a drug treatment program. She completed the intensive out-patient phase in May 2005 and continued her recovery with aftercare and support groups. She also took parenting classes because she hoped to regain custody of R.L.M.

Competing Adoption Petitions

¶ 3 After completing her drug rehabilitation program and parenting classes, Sunderland sought to become R.L.M.'s permanent placement. On September 28, 2005, Sunderland moved to intervene in R.L.M's pending dependency case. A commissioner granted her intervenor status and set a non-contested adoption review for October 31, 2005. On October 13, 2005, R.L.M.'s foster parents filed a petition to adopt R.L.M. They did not serve Sunderland with their petition. On October 17, Sunderland completed a pre-placement adoption report in preparation to petition to adopt R.L.M. On October 26, *942 2005, the superior court entered an order reversing the commissioner's decision and denying Sunderland intervention because it found that allowing her party status in the dependency was not in R.L.M.'s best interests.

¶ 4 On November 9, 2005, Sunderland also filed a petition to adopt R.L.M., without the necessary DSHS consent required under RCW 26.33.160. She included her pre-placement report with this filing. The report conditionally recommended Sunderland as an adoptive parent, stating that she would be a suitable permanent placement for R.L.M. provided that she "continue in the recovery lifestyle she has applied since her treatment seven months ago, including parenting work, counseling and relocating out of her neighborhood." Sunderland was unable to file the necessary post-placement report because R.L.M. had not lived with her since March 2005.

¶ 5 On November 10, 2005, DSHS filed its consent to adoption by the foster family, waiver of right to notice of any further hearings related to the adoption, and pre-placement and post-placement reports recommending R.L.M.'s foster family adopt her. That same day, R.L.M.'s foster-adopt parents filed a calendar note setting the adoption hearing for November 21, 2005. They did not serve Sunderland with notice of this hearing.

¶ 6 On the morning of November 21, 2005, the hearing on the foster parents' adoption petition began. At the hearing, the court became aware of the competing adoption petition Sunderland had filed and decided to set the hearing over until 3:20 p.m. to give Sunderland a chance to appear before the court. Counsel for the foster parents called Sunderland's attorney at 12:10 p.m. and left a message about the afternoon hearing. Sunderland's attorney was on vacation but his associate, Ruth Westbrook, arranged to appear by telephone. Neither Sunderland nor her attorney was able to attend the afternoon hearing. At that hearing, Westbrook asked for a continuance and joinder of the two adoption proceedings. She also asked the court to permit Sunderland to intervene in the competing adoption proceeding.[1] The court denied Sunderland's requests and granted the foster parents' adoption petition. On December 6, 2005, Sunderland moved for reconsideration of the adoption decision and submitted a memorandum about her objections to the proposed order. On December 7, 2005, the trial court entered its final order granting the adoption. Sunderland appeals.

DISCUSSION

I. Motion to Correct Sunderland's Brief Under RAP 10.7

¶ 7 We must initially determine whether to grant DSHS' motion to correct Sunderland's brief under RAP 10.7, requesting that all references in her brief to material not in the record be stricken. Sunderland's brief repeatedly references the transcript from the dependency hearing, at which the superior court denied Sunderland's motion for permissive intervention in R.L.M.'s dependency proceedings. This transcript is not part of the record. RAP 10.3(5) requires that all factual statements must be supported by reference to the record. Sunderland's reference to a document not in the record violates this rule.

¶ 8 Sunderland argues that we should consider the additional dependency proceeding evidence under RAP 9.11, but did not formally move to add the evidence under the rule. RAP 9.11 allows this court to consider additional evidence if it is necessary to "fairly resolve the issues on review." Here, the trial court was aware that the superior court denied intervention on revision.

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Bluebook (online)
156 P.3d 940, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/in-re-adoption-of-rlm-washctapp-2007.