IN THE COURT OF APPEALS OF NORTH CAROLINA No. COA19-858 Filed: 6 October 2020 Mecklenburg County No. 18 CVD 14611 CASSIA FERREIRA JORDAO, Plaintiff, v. NIVALDO JORDAO, Defendant. Appeal by Plaintiff from Order for Temporary Parenting Arrangement entered 7 January 2019 and Order for Permanent Custody entered 5 April 2019 by Judge Sean P. Smith in Mecklenburg County District Court. Heard in the Court of Appeals 3 March 2020. Plumides, Romano & Johnson, PC, by Richard B. Johnson, for plaintiff- appellant. Myers Law Firm, PLLC, by Matthew R. Myers, for defendant-appellee. MURPHY, Judge. We review custody orders to ensure the findings of fact are supported by substantial evidence, and the conclusions of law are supported by the findings of fact. Where unsupported findings of fact do not undermine the conclusions of law, we uphold the order. Here, each of the custody order’s conclusions of law are supported by findings of fact that are supported by substantial evidence; therefore, we uphold the order. JORDAO V. JORDAO Opinion of the Court Where a trial court does not find a parent unfit, or visitation with that parent to not be in the best interest of the children, it cannot deny reasonable visitation to that parent. Here, Father was entitled to reasonable visitation, and the trial court did not abuse its discretion in granting him reasonable visitation. The trial court carefully considered the unique circumstances of the parties and did not abuse its discretion by granting visitation in Brazil since Father is unable to exercise visitation in the United States. BACKGROUND Cassia Ferreira Jordao (“Mother”) and Nivaldo Jordao (“Father”) married in Brazil in 2001, and two children were born of the marriage—“Larry,”1 the oldest son, and “Nicholas,” the youngest son (collectively “the children”). The family moved to the United States on 27 January 2016 on a six-month tourist visa. After the expiration of that visa on 27 July 2016, the family remained in the United States without documentation. In January 2017, Mother filed for a Domestic Violence Protective Order (“DVPO”) based on allegations Father assaulted, threatened, and stalked her. The parties consented to the entry of a DVPO that prohibited Father from assaulting, harassing, or threatening Mother and gave Mother primary custody of the children. However, in June 2017, Father was arrested for violating the DVPO by allegedly 1 Pseudonyms are used for all relevant persons throughout this opinion to protect the identities of the minors and for ease of reading. -2- JORDAO V. JORDAO Opinion of the Court stalking Mother at her church. Father claimed he had asked her to meet there to pick up the youngest son. Based on these alleged acts of domestic violence, Mother applied for a U-Visa on 13 December 2017.2 After his arrest, Father was deported to Brazil due to his illegal presence in the country. Mother filed for divorce from Father on 24 July 2018. On 24 September 2018, Father filed his answer to the complaint which included a motion to dismiss the absolute divorce claim due ...
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