⭐ Lawsuit #6 Filed: My Federal Appeal to the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals
- Ryan Alvar
- 6 days ago
- 9 min read
How This Case Is No Longer Just About My Children — It’s About Parental Rights Nationwide
Today marks one of the most important steps in my 17-month legal battle:
I have filed Lawsuit #6 — an appeal to the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit, the federal appellate court with jurisdiction over:
Minnesota
North Dakota
South Dakota
Iowa
Nebraska
Missouri
Arkansas
This is the first time my case leaves the Minnesota-based federal trial court and enters a federal appellate court — a court that sits above both the U.S. District Court of Minnesota and the Minnesota Court of Appeals. The Eighth Circuit answers only to the United States Supreme Court.
This is no longer a state-level dispute.
This is a national constitutional challenge.
⭐ What This Appeal Challenges
I am challenging multiple decisions by the U.S. District Court that collectively held:
Federal courts are powerless to protect a parent and two small children from ongoing constitutional violations by the State of Minnesota.
This appeal argues the opposite — and explains why federal appellate review is required when state processes fail, delay, retaliate, or inflict harm.
Here’s what is now before the Eighth Circuit.
⭐ 1. The Emergency TRO the Federal Court Ignored
On July 11, 2025, I filed an Emergency Temporary Restraining Order under Rule 65(b).
What is Rule 65(b)?
Rule 65(b) allows a federal judge to issue an emergency TRO:
Immediately
Before the defendants are served
Without a hearing
When waiting would cause irreparable harm
And in my case, the harm was immediate and clear.
Three days later, on July 14, 2025, I was:
Jailed
Retaliated against
Punished under an unconstitutional confidentiality order
Silenced for speaking publicly about my children’s suffering
All because the State of Minnesota wanted to suppress a government-created Guardian ad Litem report that documented:
My children’s emotional trauma
Their severe deterioration
The GAL’s concerns and excuses
And the State’s complete inaction
The federal court had the power — and the duty — to act immediately.
It didn’t.
And because it didn’t, the exact harm I sought to prevent became reality.
This isn’t just error.
It is a structural denial of due process.
⭐ 2. The Federal Court Refused to Intervene Because the State Case Had “Progressed”
In both its October 14 order (ECF No. 65) and the November 10 order (ECF No. 91), the District Court concluded:
Because the state proceedings had “progressed” — with a custody trial scheduled and child support referred to a magistrate — Younger abstention prevented federal intervention.
But here’s the truth:
The state case had “progressed” BECAUSE the federal court refused to rule on the emergency TRO.
The federal court’s inaction allowed:
Contempt proceedings
Sanctions
Retaliation
More hearings
More harm
More trauma
And the sealing fight to balloon into a constitutional crisis
The federal court effectively said:
“We won’t stop this harm now because too much harm has already happened.”
This is a misuse of Younger abstention.
And the Eighth Circuit now has the opportunity to correct it.
⭐ 3. What Younger Abstention Really Means — And Why It Doesn’t Apply Here
Younger abstention is a doctrine that says federal courts should usually avoid interfering in legitimate state proceedings.
But Younger does not apply when:
The state is violating constitutional rights
The state is retaliating against protected speech
The state is inflicting harm
The state system provides no real forum for relief
The federal court’s own delay contributed to the harm
The parent and children cannot obtain timely protection
State actors are creating a state-created danger
And Younger especially does not apply when:
There is no meaningful opportunity to appeal in state court.
In Minnesota family court:
You cannot appeal until a final custody order
We are at 17 months with no trial
Trial is January 2026
The final order could take months
And only then could I appeal
Meaning:
My children, ages four and five, would go nearly two years without any access to federal protection.
Two years is a lifetime to a child.
This is exactly why federal courts exist:
to intervene when state systems fail and children are at risk.
⭐ 4. The Fight Over the GAL Report — And the State’s Misuse of Rule 4
The State of Minnesota filed a motion to seal the GAL report under Minnesota Rule of Public Access 4, claiming the report was confidential.
But Rule 4:
Does not make GAL reports automatically confidential
Does not prohibit parents from disclosing them
Does not authorize blanket sealing
Does not override parental rights
And does not allow the State to hide evidence of harm
I filed:
A full legal opposition
A motion for reconsideration
A Rule 72 objection
First Amendment arguments
Minnesota statute arguments
Constitutional arguments
Evidence showing the same information exists publicly
And here’s the staggering part:
The federal court sealed the report without ever analyzing Rule 4.
This is a core issue on appeal.
⭐ 5. Judicial Estoppel — Why the State Cannot Flip Positions
Judicial estoppel prevents parties from:
Taking one legal position in federal court, then later taking the opposite position for strategic advantage.
The State of Minnesota:
Invoked federal jurisdiction by asking the federal court to seal the report under Rule 4
Then argued the federal court lacked authority to rule because of Younger
And the federal court accepted this contradiction
This destroys the integrity of judicial proceedings.
It will now be reviewed by the Eighth Circuit.
⭐ 6. This Battle Is Bigger Than My Family — It Is National
For seventeen months, the State of Minnesota has retaliated against me after already declaring I am a fit, loving parent.
Why?
Because I am exposing the system — not simply trying to survive it.
I am not fighting this hard because I think my children will be rescued by the system that already trapped them.
It’s too late for them.
I am fighting so other families never have to go through this.
If I had stayed silent,
if I had not published the GAL report,
if I had not challenged unconstitutional orders,
if I had not filed lawsuits,
if I had simply obeyed…
I would have had my children back much sooner.
Silence is what allows this system to keep harming families — and remaining silent would only prevent their mother from receiving the support she needs to become a fit, safe parent. Without meaningful intervention, the intergenerational cycle of abuse will continue through our children, and that is a cycle that must finally end.
That is why the State fights me so aggressively.
Not because I am dangerous — the court already said I’m not.
But because I threaten their ability to operate in the dark.
And at the core of their failure is something we rarely discuss honestly:
Mental health.
In a case filled with documented, well-understood mental health concerns, a Minnesota District Court judge said:
“Mental health has nothing to do with this case.”
Our government must stop pretending it cares about mental health while its most important institutions — including family court — refuse to understand it.
Reform starts with:
Following the laws already enacted
Oversight at every level
Recognizing and prioritizing mental health
Building a system that protects children, not breaks families
Responding compassionately when a parent calls 911 asking for help
I called 911 seventeen months ago seeking protection.
Instead, the State of Minnesota tore my family apart — financially, physically, mentally, and emotionally.
This is why I fight.
⭐ 7. Why I Keep Fighting — And the Questions We Must All Ask
People ask why I continue fighting when the system seems designed to exhaust parents into silence.
The answer is simple:
You cannot reach the courts that create precedent unless you first survive the courts that get it wrong.
Quick wins in lower courts do not create reform.
Real change — the kind that protects future parents — comes through:
Appeals
Constitutional arguments
Federal review
Precedent-setting decisions
This is why appellate courts exist.
This is why the Supreme Court exists.
Because lower courts are not always right.
And so today, the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals will confront these questions:
If the State declared me safe and loving in October 2024…
If the abuse allegations were unsubstantiated and false…
If the GAL report documented trauma…
If I have filed seven lawsuits…
If I have been jailed, fined, and silenced…
If I have now appealed to both state and federal appellate courts…
Why don’t I have my children back?
Why is the State still retaliating against me?
Why won’t the federal government protect two small children from ongoing harm?
Why does exposing the truth threaten the system more than child abuse does?
These are the questions tens of thousands of parents across America are asking.
And this appeal will help answer them.
⭐ Central Question in My Federal Appeal
Whether a parent may obtain temporary or emergency federal protection when state actors are actively violating constitutional rights, suppressing government-produced evidence of child trauma, retaliating against protected speech, and enforcing an unconstitutional confidentiality framework—while the federal court delays ruling on an emergency ex parte TRO, fails to address the State’s rule-based sealing request or the Minnesota statutory protections governing confidentiality, disregards the parent’s constitutional right to advocate for his children and communicate information concerning their safety and well-being, and then invokes Younger abstention based on circumstances that arose only because of that delay.
The District Court’s decisions collectively assert that federal courts are powerless to act under these circumstances. I am seeking review of that conclusion.
⭐ The Bigger Question for Every Parent Facing the Family Court System
Whether a parent has a constitutional right to protect their child, speak publicly about government failures, present evidence of harm, and challenge unlawful state action — without being silenced, punished, retaliated against, or deprived of their children by a system operating without meaningful oversight.
And whether federal courts must step in to protect parents and children when state systems fail to follow due process, ignore mental health concerns, suppress evidence, or allow abuse to continue unchecked.
This question applies to every parent, regardless of state, regardless of case details, and regardless of whether they have the resources to fight.
If the Eighth Circuit rules in my favor, it will not just be a win for my family — it will be a foundational win for parents across the country.
⭐ Final Truth
No parent should lose their children because of false allegations.
No family should be destroyed by a system built on ideology, not evidence.
No state should be allowed to run family court systems without oversight, accountability, or respect for mental health.
No government-funded agency — GAL programs, nonprofits, child support divisions, county social services, law enforcement, or judicial officers — should have the power to silence a parent and continue child harm without consequence.
If a parent who has already been declared safe and loving can still be jailed, silenced, fined, and cut off from their children for seventeen months — even after bringing repeated legal actions just to be heard — then the system is no longer about child protection. It is about self-preservation.
It is protecting itself.
And that is why this appeal matters.
This is no longer just my fight.
This is the path toward real national reform.
This is a precedent waiting to be written.
📄 Read the Full Appeal Filed Today with the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals
This appeal is now officially before the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit, which will review the constitutional issues presented in my case and determine whether federal courts have the authority — and the obligation — to protect parents and children when the State of Minnesota and any state within their jurisdiction violates their rights.
You can read the full Notice of Appeal here:
This is the document that moves the case from the Minnesota federal trial court into the federal appellate system. From this point forward, the issues are no longer theoretical — they are under active review by a federal appellate court with the power to set binding precedent in seven states.
🔁 Join the Fight for Reform
I have filed a federal civil rights lawsuit challenging systemic misconduct by judges, attorneys, and state agencies that has stripped parents of their rights and traumatized countless children.
With 27 defendants, including the State of Minnesota, this case seeks accountability — and reform.
Join me in taking this mission national.
How You Can Help:
✅ Sign the Petition: Urge DOJ to investigate family-court violations
✅ Subscribe: Stay updated — Contact
✅ Visit: www.ryanalvar.com
✅ Support the Fight: GoFundMe – Help Cover Legal Costs & Reform Efforts
✅ Follow & Share: Real Dad Initiative
✅ Contact Your Legislators: Demand oversight for Judges, GALs and transparency in family court.
Family-court reform won’t happen unless lawmakers hear directly from the people.
If what you’ve read here troubles you, don’t stop at signing the petition—call and email your state legislators. Tell them that what has happened in this case—and in so many others—proves we need oversight for judges and guardians ad litem, uniform due-process protections, and full transparency in family courts.
📬 Not sure who represents you? Find out here → 🔗 https://www.gis.lcc.mn.gov/iMaps/districts/
Across the country, I’ve heard from parents who’ve lost everything—some haven’t seen their children in years. When the system designed to protect families becomes the weapon that destroys them, it’s time for change. We must fix this broken family court system. Until that day, I’ll keep fighting—for our children, for truth, and for justice.
"523 days since my children were kidnapped. This isn't over."
Ryan William Alvar
Parent and Plaintiff
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