State in Interest of JJT

877 P.2d 161, 1994 WL 270410
CourtCourt of Appeals of Utah
DecidedJune 10, 1994
Docket920351-CA
StatusPublished
Cited by3 cases

This text of 877 P.2d 161 (State in Interest of JJT) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Utah primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
State in Interest of JJT, 877 P.2d 161, 1994 WL 270410 (Utah Ct. App. 1994).

Opinion

877 P.2d 161 (1994)

STATE of Utah, in the Interest of J.J.T. and T.J.T.
J.T., Appellant.

No. 920351-CA.

Court of Appeals of Utah.

June 10, 1994.

Robert L. Froerer, Ogden, for appellant.

Jan Graham and Carol L.C. Verdoia, Salt Lake City, for State.

Before ORME, Associate P.J., and BENCH and BILLINGS, JJ.

ORME, Associate Presiding Judge:

Appellant seeks reversal of the trial court's decision terminating his parental rights. He contends the court's action is barred by res judicata. We disagree and affirm the trial court's judgment.

*162 FACTS

J.T., the appellant, is the biological father of minors J.J.T. and T.J.T. Appellant resided with the mother of the two minors, as well as with her five other minor children from previous marriages. Pursuant to a missing persons investigation, on December 17, 1990, police discovered the body of appellant's six year-old stepson in a shallow grave in appellant's back yard. Appellant was subsequently charged with third degree felony abuse of a corpse and second degree felony homicide.

The circumstances surrounding the death of appellant's stepson prompted the State to file a neglect petition on January 3, 1991, seeking temporary custody of the minor children residing with appellant, including J.J.T. Appellant admitted the allegations of neglect, and J.J.T. was placed in the temporary custody and guardianship of the Division of Family Services ("DFS"). Although the neglect petition was decided February 12, 1991, three days before appellant was sentenced to a five-years-to-life sentence of imprisonment, investigations by DFS into appellant's conduct vis-a-vis the children continued until approximately February 19, 1991.

On March 8, 1991, J.J.T.'s mother gave birth to appellant's son, T.J.T. Two weeks later, the State filed a petition with the juvenile court alleging that T.J.T. was a dependent child, and also filed a separate petition to terminate appellant's parental rights to J.J.T. and T.J.T. The petition to terminate parental rights was premised on parental unfitness, incompetence, and abandonment of J.J.T. and T.J.T.

Appellant asserts that the petition to terminate parental rights is barred by the doctrine of res judicata, arguing that the State could have brought the petition to terminate parental rights when the earlier neglect petition was filed by the State, or at least before the earlier petition was decided.[1]

STANDARD OF REVIEW

Appellant does not challenge the sufficiency of evidence relied on by the juvenile court to terminate his parental rights, but argues only that the termination petition was barred by res judicata. Therefore, this appeal presents a question of law. Office of Recovery Servs. v. V.G.P., 845 P.2d 944, 946 (Utah App.1992). Accepting the trial court's factual findings, we review its conclusions of law for correctness, according them no particular deference. Id.

ANALYSIS

Although appellant's single contention on appeal may be simply stated, the issue is an important one meriting careful consideration. Accordingly, we begin with a brief review of the res judicata doctrine and its two prongs, claim preclusion and issue preclusion. However, before putting the facts of this case through traditional res judicata analysis, we pause to question the applicability of the doctrine to cases involving the termination of parental rights. Only then do we consider whether the termination of appellant's parental rights is barred under the claim preclusion doctrine.

A. RES JUDICATA GENERALLY

The doctrine of res judicata "is based on the premise that the proper administration of justice is best served by limiting parties to one fair trial of an issue or cause." Trimble Real Estate v. Monte Vista Ranch, Inc., 758 P.2d 451, 453 (Utah App.1988) (citation omitted). Consequently, the doctrine has evolved from common law jurisprudence to serve such public interests as "fostering reliance on prior adjudication," "preventing inconsistent decisions," "relieving parties of the cost and vexation of multiple lawsuits," and "conserving judicial resources." Office of Recovery Servs. v. V.G.P., 845 P.2d 944, 946 (Utah App.1992) (citing Allen v. McCurry, 449 U.S. 90, 94, 101 S.Ct. 411, 415, 66 L.Ed.2d 308 (1980)).

*163 Res judicata has two related but distinct branches, both of which are intended to promote judicial economy and the convenience afforded by finality in legal controversies. Copper State Thrift & Loan v. Bruno, 735 P.2d 387, 389 (Utah App.1987). One branch, claim preclusion, or "pure" res judicata, bars, inter alia, the relitigation of claims which have been previously litigated between the same parties. Id. To invoke this branch of res judicata, three requirements must be satisfied:

First, both cases must involve the same parties or their privies. Second, the claim that is alleged to be barred must have been presented in the first suit or must be one that could and should have been raised in the first action. Third, the first suit must have resulted in a final judgment on the merits.

Madsen v. Borthick, 769 P.2d 245, 247 (Utah 1988). The other branch, issue preclusion, traditionally known as collateral estoppel, prevents relitigation of issues that have been decided, though the causes of action or claims for relief are not the same. Penrod v. Nu Creation Creme, Inc., 669 P.2d 873, 875 (Utah 1983); Copper State, 735 P.2d at 389.

The parties agree that the case before us turns on application of the claim preclusion prong of the res judicata doctrine. Thus, res judicata would bar the State's petition to terminate appellant's parental rights in J.J.T. if the neglect petition presents the same claim, demand, or cause of action as the petition to terminate parental rights. The doctrine would bar not only claims for relief which were litigated to finality on their merits, but also those claims which could and should have been presented in the prior action, but were not. Accordingly, if res judicata applies in this case, we must consider not only whether the neglect proceeding has preclusive effect because of claims actually litigated, but also whether the State could and should have brought the termination petition contemporaneously with the neglect petition.

B. GENERAL APPLICABILITY OF RES JUDICATA TO PROCEEDINGS TERMINATING PARENTAL RIGHTS

A more fundamental question, however, is whether the judicial doctrine of res judicata has any application in proceedings involving the welfare of children. Mindful of the unique nature of child custody and related proceedings, we share the concerns expressed by the courts which have recognized that a hyper-technical application of res judicata is improper in adjudications where the welfare of children is at stake.[2] Considerations regarding a child's welfare are rarely, if ever, static.

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Bluebook (online)
877 P.2d 161, 1994 WL 270410, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-in-interest-of-jjt-utahctapp-1994.