The Pennsylvania Superior Court upheld a ruling that awards Julie S. Surma exclusive authority over her two daughters' extracurricular schedules while preserving shared legal and physical custody with their father, John M. Surma. Evidence revealed the father excluded the mother from birthday parties, award ceremonies, school functions, and country club tennis matches during his custody periods. The lower court also found that he monitored the length of the children's calls with software and threatened to cancel video visits if the mother attended specific events. Despite the father's claims that the decision would marginalize him, the appellate court ruled the arrangement properly serves th…
Key points
The appellate court affirmed that the lower court acted within its discretion to reduce o…: The appellate court affirmed that the lower court acted within its discretion to reduce ongoing parental conflicts.
Evidence showed the father repeatedly undermined the children's relationship with their m…: Evidence showed the father repeatedly undermined the children's relationship with their mother by restricting her access to milestone events.
Both parents will continue to share overall physical and legal custody under the affirmed…: Both parents will continue to share overall physical and legal custody under the affirmed custody arrangement.
Sources checked by our analysis pipeline: 1
A custody dispute can become particularly difficult when parents struggle to cooperate over their children's everyday activities and important milestones. In Pennsylvania, a father who objected to the mother's involvement in the children's school events and extracurricular activities challenged a custody order giving her sole decision-making authority over those activities. The Pennsylvania Superior Court, in a November 12, 2026 memorandum
decision available on Justia, upheld the arrangement, finding no abuse of discretion in the lower court's custody determination.
The case involved John M Surma and Julie S Surma, who share two daughters. Although both parents retained shared physical and legal custody, the trial court gave the mother sole legal custody over the children's extracurricular activities. The father appealed, arguing that the court had made errors in evaluating the evidence and determining the custody arrangements.
Dispute over school events and children's activities
The custody proceedings had been ongoing since 2019, following the father's divorce and custody filings. Both parents had previously been granted shared legal and physical custody. However, disagreements over parenting arrangements, communication and the children's activities continued, eventually leading…
Modelled after the US reality television show Shark Tank, the newly launched programme sharpens oracy and problem-solving skills through real-time interrogation. Participants deliver three-minute pitches to evaluate whether their proposals merit practical development backing from the institution. This initiative aims to help naturally reserved teenagers develop clearer thinking habits and overcome personal public speaking barriers.
The institution's specialized aviation curriculum leverages flight principles to teach science, technology, engineering, and mathematics alongside critical collaborative skills. Updated to prepare learners for an AI-driven future, the training also integrates space and astronomy concepts. This approach directly links practical coursework to national aerospace initiatives, creating early pathways into the local aviation sector.
Suspected Houthi cross-border aerial attacks have killed at least 26 people across the kingdom since late September, prompting American diplomats to urge citizens to maintain heightened vigilance. The latest defensive actions parallel intense ground and air clashes across Yemen, particularly around key central front lines. This escalating conflict continues to extract a devastating humanitarian toll, displacing hundreds of thousands of civilians.