This appeal arises from the intersection of two separate lawsuits. One is a federal action between Willie Clayton, the nominal appellant in this case, and an insurer regarding the proceeds of a policy on the life of his late wife. The second is this domestic relations action, in which custody of Clayton’s three children was awarded to Moore, their maternal aunt. Clayton was also ordered to pay $53,500 in past and future child support, to be paid out of the life insurance proceeds that are the subject of the federal suit. In this appeal, Clayton challenges an order dissolving an attorney’s lien held by Daniel F. Ashley, who represented Clayton in the federal lawsuit. We find no error, and we affirm the order dissolving the lien. After Clayton’s wife was murdered, her sister, Moore, instituted this action seeking custody of the children and child support. As part of that action, she sought a restraining order preventing the life insurance proceeds from being distributed to Clayton. A temporary restraining order was entered, and Moore was awarded temporary custody at a hearing. After a hearing, the trial court entered an order on November 7, 1996 nunc pro tunc September 16, 1996, finding that Clayton was unfit to have custody of the children and that he had not made any contribution to their support. Custody was awarded to Moore. All other issues were reserved.
On May 2, 2000, Moore moved the trial court to lift the restraining order, which motion was granted. The court ordered the proceeds of the life insurance policy deposited into the registry of the court and ordered the parties to mediate their dispute regarding the proceeds. The parties were unable to reach a settlement, however, and the case was referred back to court.
