J.L. v. A.L. and B.L.

── J.L. v. A.L. and B.L. ── Court: Court of Civil Appeals of Alabama Date: May 15, 2026 Author: Moore Category: General Rel: May 15, 2026 Notice: This opinion is subject to formal revision before publication in the advance sheets of Southern Reporter. Readers are requested to notify the Reporter of Decisions, Alabama Appellate Courts, 300 Dexter Avenue, Montgomery, Alabama 36104-3741 ((334) 229-0650), of any typographical or other errors, in order that corrections may be made before the opinion is published in Southern Reporter. ALABAMA COURT OF CIVIL APPEALS OCTOBER TERM, 2025-2026 _________________________ CL-2025-0973, CL-2025-0974, and CL-2025-0975 _________________________ J.L. v. A.L. and B.L. Appeals from Jefferson Juvenile Court (JU-20-595.03, JU-20-596.03, and JU-21-528.02) MOORE, Presiding Judge. In these consolidated appeals, J.L. ("the father") appeals from three separate judgments entered by the Jefferson Juvenile Court ("the juvenile court") denying his petition to modify the custody of his three children -- D.L., who was born on May 29, 2027; M.L., who was born on CL-2025-0973; CL-2025-0974; and CL-2025-0975 December 27, 2018; and L.L., who was born on April 30, 2021. We reverse the judgments and remand the cases to the juvenile court. Background On February 11, 2025, the father filed a petition in case numbers JU-20-595.03, JU-20-596.03, and JU-21-528.02, in which he asserted, among other things, that the juvenile court had entered judgments on March 14, 2022 ("the 2022 judgments"), awarding custody of D.L., M.L., and L.L. ("the children") to their maternal aunt, B.L. ("the maternal aunt"). Although copies of the 2022 judgments are not included in the record on appeal, testimony from the father and the maternal aunt clarified that, in the 2022 judgments, the juvenile court awarded custody of the children to the maternal aunt and awarded the father and A.L. ("the mother") visitation with the children for two hours twice each month, with said visitations to be supervised by the maternal aunt or her designee. The father's testimony indicates that, to exercise their visitation with the children, the mother and the father were required to separately contact the maternal aunt 48 hours in advance to schedule visitation and to confirm their attendance and that, should they fail to do so, their visits would be deemed forfeited. 2 CL-2025-0973; CL-2025-0974; and CL-2025-0975 In his February 11, 2025, petition, the father asserted, among other things, that there had been a material change of circumstances; that the father had not seen the children between August 24, 2024, and January 12, 2025; that the maternal aunt was "actively denying the father his court-ordered visitation" in violation of the 2022 judgments; and that the father had secured employment and had addressed his substance-abuse issues. He asserted that the children's safety and well-being would be ensured by awarding him sole legal and physical custody and that it would be in the children's best interest to place them in the father's custody, care, and control. In addition to a modification of custody, the father sought a finding of contempt against the maternal aunt "for her noncompliance [with the 2022 judgments] by actively denying the father visitation" and an award of child support from the mother. On February 12, 2025, the juvenile court entered a separate order in each action appointing a guardian ad litem for the children and scheduling a preliminary hearing for May 6, 2025. On May 7, 2025, the juvenile court entered a separate but identical order in each action in which it stated that, at that time, "the mother [and the maternal aunt] h