Before Justices Hardesty, Parraguirre, and Cherry. Opinion by Justice Cherry.
In this extraordinary writ proceeding, the Court analyzed whether a co-parent with joint custody of a child, Falconi, may seek the disclosure of the fictitious address of the other co-parent, Farrar, which was obtained from the Secretary of State based on evidence of domestic violence by Falconi. The Court determined that a TRO issued to Farrar following a physical altercation at the parties’ shared residence was sufficient to support the issuance of the fictitious address to Farrar under NRS 217.462. The Secretary of State was obligated to issue the fictitious address based on the TRO and was neither required nor authorized by statute to inquire into whether the TRO was issued based on a finding of domestic violence or a finding or a potential threat of violence. As for Falconi’s request for Farrar’s confidential address, the Court adopted the reasoning of Sacharow v. Sacharow, 826 A.2d 710, 714 (N.J. 2003), which balanced the competing interests of one parent’s need for confidentiality against the need for the other parent to know where the child was living. In Sacharow, the court placed the burden on the parent with the confidential address to establish that he or she was the victim of domestic violence at the hands of the other parent, and that he or she reasonably feared future violence. If established, the burden shifts to the other parent to establish that, based on other factors, address confidentiality is not in the child’s best interest. As applied in Nevada, the Sacharow analysis comes into play after the parent seeking the confidential address establishes that he or she shares joint legal custody. Ultimately, the Court denied the writ, finding that the district court was the appropriate court to make the pertinent factual determinations. The Court specifically indicated that its decision did not impair Falconi’s right to seek relief in the district court. Petition denied. (David Stoft, Associate in the Las Vegas office of McDonald Carano Wilson).
