IN THE SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF HAWAI`I
PEGGY FEARN, Plaintiff-Petitioner
vs.
THE HONORABLE GREGG YOUNG, Per Diem Judge of the Family
Court of the First Circuit, State of Hawai`i, or his successor
in interest of the Family Court of the First Circuit, Respondent
and
RODGER JOHNSON, Defendant-Respondent
ORIGINAL PROCEEDING
ORDER
DENYING PETITION FOR WRIT OF MANDAMUS
(By: Moon, C.J., Levinson, Nakayama, Acoba, and Duffy, JJ.)
Upon consideration of Petitioner Peggy Fearn's petition for a writ of mandamus and the supplemental memorandum in regard to the petition for a writ of mandamus, the papers in support, and the records and files herein, it appears that: (1) Petitioner asks this court to review the order issued by the respondent judge in Fearn v. Johnson, FC-DA 03-1-2850, wherein the respondent judge refused to take further action on Petitioner's petition for a temporary restraining order and deferred jurisdiction to the North Dakota court that was handling matters related to Petitioner's divorce and custody of a minor child in Johnson v. Fearn, Civil No. 95-C-1658, pending in the District Court, Grand Fork County, North Dakota; (2) Petitioner also filed a motion in the North Dakota case asking North Dakota to decline to exercise its jurisdiction and to relinquish jurisdiction to the Hawai`i court; (3) on March 26, 2004, the North Dakota court issued a memorandum decision granting Petitioner's motion and relinquishing jurisdiction to the Hawai`i family court; (4) inasmuch as the North Dakota court relinquished jurisdiction over these matters to the Hawai`i court and Petitioner can seeks any appropriate relief in the Hawai`i family court, the issuance of a writ of mandamus is not warranted. See Kema v. Gaddis, 91 Hawai`i 200, 204, 982 P.2d 334, 338 (1999) (citing Straub Clinic & Hospital v. Kochi, 81 Hawaii 410, 414, 917 P.2d 1284, 1288 (1996))(a writ of mandamus is an extraordinary remedy that will not issue unless the petitioner demonstrates a clear and indisputable right to relief and a lack of alternative means to redress the alleged wrong or obtain the requested action). Therefore,
IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that the petition for a writ of mandamus is denied without prejudice to Petitioner seeking any appropriate relief in the Family Court of the First Circuit.
DATED: Honolulu,
Hawai`i, April 16, 2004.
Everett
Cuskaden,
Ryan Cuskaden,
and
Evan Uchida
(Everett
Cuskaden &
Associates)
for
plaintiff-petitioner
on the writ