Opinion
No. 119 CAF 22-01684
03-15-2024
IN THE MATTER OF CHRISTINE TAGGART, PETITIONER-RESPONDENT, v. LINCOLN DUNCAN SISK, RESPONDENT-APPELLANT.
FRANK H. HISCOCK LEGAL AID SOCIETY, SYRACUSE (PHILIP ROTHSCHILD OF COUNSEL), FOR RESPONDENT-APPELLANT. CHRISTINE TAGGART, PETITIONER-RESPONDENT PRO SE. ARLENE BRADSHAW, SYRACUSE, ATTORNEY FOR THE CHILDREN.
FRANK H. HISCOCK LEGAL AID SOCIETY, SYRACUSE (PHILIP ROTHSCHILD OF COUNSEL), FOR RESPONDENT-APPELLANT.
CHRISTINE TAGGART, PETITIONER-RESPONDENT PRO SE.
ARLENE BRADSHAW, SYRACUSE, ATTORNEY FOR THE CHILDREN.
PRESENT: SMITH, J.P., MONTOUR, OGDEN, DELCONTE, AND KEANE, JJ.
Appeal from an order of the Family Court, Onondaga County (Julie A. Cecile, J.), entered October 4, 2022, in a proceeding pursuant to Family Court Act article 6. The order, among other things, awarded petitioner sole legal and physical custody of the subject children.
It is hereby ORDERED that the order so appealed from is unanimously affirmed without costs.
Memorandum: In this proceeding pursuant to Family Court Act article 6, respondent father appeals from an order that, inter alia, awarded petitioner mother sole legal and physical custody of the subject children. We affirm.
On appeal, the father contends that Family Court abused its discretion in denying his request for an adjournment on the day of trial on the mother's modification petition. We reject that contention. "The grant or denial of a motion for an adjournment for any purpose is a matter resting within the sound discretion of the trial court" (Matter of Dixon v Crow, 192 A.D.3d 1467, 1467 [4th Dept 2021], lv denied 37 N.Y.3d 904 [2021] [internal quotation marks omitted]; see Matter of John D., Jr. [John D.], 199 A.D.3d 1412, 1413 [4th Dept 2021], lv denied 38 N.Y.3d 903 [2022]). Here, the father failed to demonstrate that the need for an adjournment to prepare for a trial on a petition that had been pending for two years was not due to his refusal to cooperate with his assigned counsel without good cause (see generally Matter of Carter H. [Seth H.], 191 A.D.3d 1359, 1361 [4th Dept 2021]; Matter of Anthony J.A. [Jason A.A.], 180 A.D.3d 1376, 1378 [4th Dept 2020], lv denied 35 N.Y.3d 902 [2020]; Matter of Petkovsek v Snyder, 251 A.D.2d 1088, 1088-1089 [4th Dept 1998]).