Darin Rumer recently achieved a successful appellate result for a mother in a child custody modification case.
The parents, who were not married, shared joint legal custody of their child under a January 2024 court order. That order awarded the mother primary physical custody, with the father exercising parenting time every other weekend. In April 2025, the father filed an emergency motion seeking temporary custody.
Following an emergency hearing, the trial court granted the father’s motion in part and entered an Emergency Custody Order temporarily modifying the existing custody arrangement. Darin filed an appeal on the mother’s behalf to the Appellate Court of Maryland.
On appeal, the appeals court held that the trial court erred by issuing an Emergency Custody Order without first determining whether a material change in circumstances had occurred and whether the requested modification was in the child’s best interests. As a result, the Appellate Court vacated the emergency order and remanded the case for further proceedings consistent with its opinion.