Matter of Marriage of Dennis

Father appeals from a judgment that awards custody of his two children to their maternal grandmother and grants him parenting time. We review the facts de novo, ORS 19.415(3). Because we conclude that grandmother did not rebut the statutory presumption that father acts in the best interests of his children, we reverse and remand.

Mother and father married in the late 1990s. They have two children. C was born in 1997 and was approximately five and one-half years old at the time of the trial in March 2003. Because C has severe developmental delays in his auditory comprehension and expressive…