§51-2A-14. Review by circuit court; record; standard of review; temporary order upon demand.

(a) The circuit court may refuse to consider the petition for appeal may affirm or reverse the order, may affirm or reverse the order in part or may remand the case with instructions for further hearing before the family court judge.

(b) In considering a petition for appeal, the circuit court may only consider the record as provided in subsection (d), section eight of this article.

(c) The circuit court shall review the findings of fact made by the family court judge under the clearly erroneous standard and shall review the application of law to the facts under an abuse of discretion standard.

(d) If the circuit court agrees to consider a petition for appeal, the court shall provide the parties an opportunity to appear for oral argument, upon the request of either party or in the discretion of the court. The provisions of this subsection are effective until the adoption of rules by the Supreme Court of Appeals governing the appellate procedures of family courts.

(e) If the proceeding is remanded to the family court, the circuit court must enter appropriate temporary orders for a parenting plan or other allocation of custodial responsibility or decision-making responsibility for a child, child support, spousal support or such other temporary relief as the circumstances of the parties may require. If the circuit court remands the case to the family court, it must state the legal or factual issues to be considered by the family court on remand. If the family court determines that the consideration of those issues also requires consideration of collateral or interdependent issues, the family court may also consider those other collateral or interdependent issues.

(f) The circuit court must enter an order ruling on a petition for appeal within sixty days from the last day a reply to the petition for appeal could have been filed. If the circuit court does not enter the order within the sixty-day period or does not, within the sixty-day period, enter an order stating just cause why the order has not been timely entered, the circuit clerk shall send a written notice to the parties that unless the parties both file an objection within fourteen days of the date of the notice, the appeal will be transferred to the Supreme Court of Appeals as provided in section fifteen of this article due to the failure of the circuit court to timely enter an order. The appeal shall be transferred without the necessity of the filing of any petition or further document by the petitioner.