IN RE EPIK W. ET AL. - Articles

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IN RE EPIK W. ET AL.

Posted by: Azya Thornton on Oct 29, 2024

Court: TN Court of Appeals

Attorneys 1: Kathryn Fort, East Lansing, Michigan, and Joshua J. Bond, Knoxville, Tennessee, for the appellant, Nenana Native Association.

Attorneys 2: Suzanne Shackelford Queen, Bristol, Tennessee, for the appellee, George W.

Attorneys 3: Stana M. Donnelly, Erwin, Tennessee, for the appellees, David H. and Amy H.

Attorneys 4: Sarah Larkin, Johnson City, Tennessee, Guardian ad Litem.

Attorneys 5: Jonathan Skrmetti, Attorney General and Reporter, J. Matthew Rice, Solicitor General, Amber L. Barker, Senior Assistant Attorney General, and Katherine P. Adams, Assistant Attorney General, for the appellee, Tennessee Department of Children’s Services.

Judge(s): GOLDIN

The present appeal originates out of a Juvenile Court dependency and neglect proceeding. During the pendency of the case in the Juvenile Court, the Nenana Native Association filed a notice of intervention and averred that the two children at issue in this appeal are “Indian Children” under the Indian Child Welfare Act. The Nenana Native Association requested that the Juvenile Court enter an order acknowledging its status as these children’s tribe, and the Juvenile Court subsequently did so. Although the Nenana Native Association was allowed to intervene as a party in the case, the Juvenile Court later entered an order denying a request that the case be transferred to a tribal court. An appeal was thereafter pursued in the Circuit Court, and the Circuit Court, considering the matter de novo under Tennessee Code Annotated section 37-1-159(a), also entered an order denying transfer. Although the Nenana Native Association now pursues an appeal of the Circuit Court’s order in this Court, we conclude that the Circuit Court lacked jurisdiction to hear the interlocutory appeal from the Juvenile Court. Accordingly, we vacate the Circuit Court’s judgment and remand the case back to the Circuit Court with instructions that it remand the matter back to the Juvenile Court for further proceedings.

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