BY JAY WEAVER

 Elian Gonzalez's father made his first legal move Wednesday when he asked a federal court to bounce the boy's great-uncle from a lawsuit seeking a political asylum hearing for the child -- a strategy that could lead to the dismissal of the case.

 Juan Miguel Gonzalez asked the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals to allow him to intervene in the 6-year-old's immigration case so that he can take the place of the boy's great-uncle Lazaro Gonzalez.

 In court papers, the father called Lazaro Gonzalez ``an intruder and uninvited meddler in Elian's life.''

 As Elian's ``next friend,'' Lazaro Gonzalez originally filed the suit in Miami federal court, where a judge upheld the U.S. government's decision to shelve the child's asylum application because he is so young and his father wanted it withdrawn. The great-uncle has appealed the ruling to the 11th Circuit.

 If the appeals court names Elian's father as his ``next friend,'' Juan Miguel Gonzalez would likely try to have the appeal dismissed so he can return with his son to Cuba as soon as possible.

 The father's 21-page pleading, filed by his high-powered Washington, D.C., attorney Gregory Craig, argues that only he can legally and morally represent Elian's best interests -- not the great-uncle in Miami.

 The father also asked a three-judge panel of the appeals court to deny a request by Lazaro Gonzalez to appoint an independent guardian for the boy.

 `LAUGHABLE' CLAIM

 The court papers portray the Miami relatives -- who cared for the boy for five months until federal agents raided their Little Havana home Saturday to reunite him with his father -- as disruptive forces in Elian's life.

 ``In light of the outrageous treatment that Elian received at the hands of his Miami relatives, [their] claim that Elian is now in need of protection -- from his father, from the Cuban government, from Cuban physicians, psychologists or other medical personnel -- is laughable,'' the filing said. ``No one is threatening Elian in any way.''

 The father's attorney, who represented President Clinton in his impeachment proceedings last year, also wrote that Elian's custody case has been regrettably fought with Cold War fervor at the expense of the child.

 ``Whatever the motives of Lazaro Gonzalez and his kin may be, it is sadly obvious that Elian indeed has been made the unwilling pawn on the chessboards of United States-Cuba relations, politics, and innumerable other agendas,'' the filing said. ``This father, however, asks only for his young child -- for the chance to provide Elian all the love and devotion he deserves.''

 TRY FOR DISMISSAL

 If the appeals court in Atlanta allows Elian's father to intervene in the case and replace the boy's great-uncle as his ``next friend,'' Juan Miguel Gonzalez's lawyer would likely move to have the child's appeal dismissed.

 ``The father wants to replace Lazaro Gonzalez as the appropriate person representing his son so Lazaro no longer has legal standing in the court,'' said Miami attorney Richard Milstein, who specializes in family law.

 Ever since the Saturday raid, the Miami relatives have been rebuffed in their efforts to meet with the boy, who is now staying with his father at the Wye Plantation, a privately owned compound on Maryland's Eastern Shore.

 On Tuesday, their lawyers asked the appeals court in Atlanta to bar anyone from taking the boy to the Cuban mission in Washington, D.C., or to a Cuban official's home immune from diplomatic immunity on grounds that Elian could be whisked away to Cuba or unduly influenced by Fidel Castro's government.

 FAMILY'S REQUESTS

 That request was immediately granted by Circuit Judge James L. Edmondson, but he asked the U.S. government to respond by Wednesday to the relatives' other petition seeking an independent guardian to look after Elian in the dispute.

 The Justice Department on Wednesday opposed the relatives' motion because his father has custody. Justice lawyers pledged to provide the court with regular reports from a psychiatrist and social worker who have been hired to monitor Elian.

 The legal team for Elian's Miami relatives could not be reached late Wednesday, but one of the family's attorneys previously said the boy's legal rights have been stolen from him and that he needs a court-appointed guardian to represent him.

 ``Elian can't have an appeals court hearing because his lawyers don't have access to him,'' Miami attorney Kendall Coffey said. ``When the government seized control of him, it destroyed the boy's right to seek an asylum hearing.''

 As Elian's ``next friend,'' Lazaro was allowed to bring the original suit on his behalf in Miami federal court and pursue the boy's appeal. A ``next friend'' is defined in Black's Law Dictionary as ``one acting for the benefit of an infant, married woman or other person . . . without being regularly appointed guardian.''

 If the appeals court sides with the father, his next step would be to end his son's court appeal, Milstein said.

 PARENTAL AUTHORITY

 ``The father's goal is to take control of the litigation to the point where he is going to ask the court to dismiss the lawsuit, or to the point where he is recognized as the parental authority and has the only right to speak for the boy.''

 If the father succeeds, Juan Miguel Gonzalez and his son could be returning to Cuba sooner than anyone expected. As the case stands right now, oral arguments are set for May 11.

                     Copyright 2000 Miami Herald