After a New Jersey appellate court vacated a trial court’s custody award to Chesare Horton on jurisdictional grounds, Horton filed a petition for modification of custody, visitation and child support against Deborah Hinton-Lynch in Cobb County, seeking custody of their minor daughter. The trial court awarded sole custody of the child to Horton, and Lynch appeals, arguing that the trial court erred in granting Horton’s petition because i Horton did not move to set aside the domesticated New Jersey judgment; ii Horton filed his petition as a counterclaim; iii the trial court failed to find that Horton had unclean hands notwithstanding evidence that he took the child across state lines, in violation of Lynch’s custodial rights; and iv Horton failed to prove a material change of circumstances affecting the minor child to warrant a change in custody. Finding the existence of material conditions affecting the child’s welfare which would warrant a change of custody and promote the child’s best interest, we affirm the trial court’s order modifying custody. We will affirm a trial court’s decision on a petition to change custody if there is any reasonable evidence in the record to support it. See Mitcham v. Spry , 300 Ga. App. 386 685 SE2d 374 2009. “When reviewing a child custody decision, this Court views the evidence presented in the light most favorable to upholding the trial court’s order.” Footnote omitted. Id.
So viewed, the evidence shows that Lynch and Horton are the parents of a minor daughter, T.H. Horton filed a petition to legitimate T.H., and in 2002, the trial court issued an order declaring T.H. to be Horton’s legitimate child; awarding Lynch sole custody; and granting Horton supervised visitation for two years, followed by unsupervised visitation. By separate consent order, Horton was obligated to pay child support to Lynch. Later in 2002, Lynch moved to New Jersey. Thereafter, on several occasions, Horton had little or no visitation with T.H. because Lynch was either not at home or had moved when he traveled from Georgia to New Jersey to visit with the child. Nor did Lynch communicate with Horton or return his phone calls. In October 2004, when Lynch took T.H. to her mother and stepfather’s home in North Carolina, she failed to inform Horton of such fact. T.H. remained with Lynch’s mother and stepfather until late January 2005.
