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Matter of Young v. Rios
Citations: 2017 NY Slip Op 5007; 151 A.D.3d 1862; 57 N.Y.S.3d 608Docket: 823 CAF 16-00210
Court: Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of the State of New York; June 16, 2017; New York; State Appellate Court
Original Court Document: View Document
John F. Young appealed an order from the Family Court of Oneida County, which dismissed his petition alleging that Merry L. Rios violated a prior visitation order by not allowing him to see their child. The Family Court, after a hearing, granted a motion from the Attorney for the Child (AFC) to dismiss the petition based on the doctrine of equitable estoppel, asserting that Young was precluded from asserting his visitation rights due to his failure to establish a relationship with the child. The Appellate Division affirmed the dismissal but disagreed with the Family Court's application of equitable estoppel. The appellate court clarified that equitable estoppel is intended to prevent someone from asserting a right after leading another to reasonably believe that the right would not be asserted, which was not applicable in Young's case since he was claiming a violation of an existing visitation order, not asserting new visitation rights. Despite the Family Court's error in applying equitable estoppel, the appellate court reviewed the case on its merits and found that Young did not provide clear and convincing evidence that Rios willfully violated the visitation order. The court also noted that Young's argument for a specific visitation schedule based on the child's best interests was not properly part of the violation petition and could be raised in a future modification petition. The order was entered on June 16, 2017.