Current Through April 2016

Circumstances That Constitute Witnessing

This issue is not addressed in the statutes reviewed.

Consequences

This issue is not addressed in the statutes reviewed.

Current Through February 2016

Physical Abuse

Citation: Comp. Laws §§ 722.622; 722.628(3)(c)‘Child abuse’ means harm or threatened harm to a child’s health or welfare that occurs through nonaccidental physical or mental injury, sexual abuse, sexual exploitation, or maltreatment by a parent, a legal guardian, or any other person responsible for the child’s health or welfare or by a teacher, a teacher’s aide, or a member of the clergy.

‘Severe physical injury’ means an injury to the child that requires medical treatment or hospitalization and that seriously impairs the child’s health or physical well-being.

Neglect

Citation: Comp. Laws § 722.622‘Child neglect’ means harm or threatened harm to a child’s health or welfare, by a parent, legal guardian, or any other person responsible for the child’s health or welfare, that occurs through either of the following:

• Negligent treatment, including the failure to provide adequate food, clothing, shelter, or medical care
• Placing a child at an unreasonable risk to the child’s health or welfare by failure to intervene to eliminate that risk when the parent, legal guardian, or other person responsible for the child’s health or welfare is able to do so and has, or should have, knowledge of the risk

Sexual Abuse/Exploitation

Citation: Comp. Laws § 722.622‘Sexual abuse’ means engaging in sexual contact or sexual penetration with a child as those terms are defined in the penal code.

‘Sexual exploitation’ includes allowing, permitting, or encouraging a child to engage in prostitution, or allowing, permitting, encouraging, or engaging in photographing, filming, or depicting a child engaged in a sexual act.

Emotional Abuse

Citation: Comp. Laws § 722.622The term ‘child abuse’ includes mental injury.

Abandonment

This issue is not addressed in the statutes reviewed.

Standards for Reporting

Citation: Comp. Laws § 722.623
A report is required when a mandatory reporter has reasonable cause to suspect child abuse or neglect.

Persons Responsible for the Child

Citation: Comp. Laws § 722.622A ‘person responsible for the child’s health or welfare’ means a parent; legal guardian; person age 18 or older who resides for any length of time in the same home as the child; nonparent adult; or an owner, operator, volunteer, or employee of one or more of the following:

• A licensed or registered child care organization
• A licensed or unlicensed adult foster care family home or adult foster care small group home
• A court-operated facility

‘Nonparent adult’ means a person who is age 18 or older and who, regardless of the person’s domicile, meets all of the following criteria in relation to a child:

• Has substantial and regular contact with the child
• Has a close personal relationship with the child’s parent or with a person responsible for the child’s health or welfare
• Is not the child’s parent or a person otherwise related to the child by blood or affinity to the third degree

Exceptions

Citation: Comp. Laws § 722.634A parent or guardian legitimately practicing his or her religious beliefs who thereby does not provide specified medical treatment for a child, for that reason alone shall not be considered a negligent parent or guardian. This section shall not preclude a court from ordering the provision of medical services or nonmedical remedial services recognized by State law to a child when the child’s health requires it, nor does it abrogate the responsibility of a person required to report child abuse or neglect.

Current Through August 2013

Defined in Domestic Violence Civil Laws

Citation: Comp. Laws § 400.1501‘Domestic violence’ means the occurrence of any of the following acts by a person that is not an act of self-defense:

• Causing or attempting to cause physical or mental harm to a family or household member
• Placing a family or household member in fear of physical or mental harm
• Causing or attempting to cause a family or household member to engage in involuntary sexual activity by force, threat of force, or duress
• Engaging in activity toward a family or household member that would cause a reasonable person to feel terrorized, frightened, intimidated, threatened, harassed, or molested

Defined in Child Abuse Reporting and Child Protection Laws

Citation:This issue is not addressed in the statutes reviewed.

Defined in Criminal Laws

Citation: Comp. Laws §§ 750.81; 750.81aAn individual who assaults or assaults and batters his or her spouse or former spouse, an individual with whom he or she has or has had a dating relationship, an individual with whom he or she has had a child in common, or a resident or former resident of his or her household is guilty of a misdemeanor.

An individual who commits an assault or an assault and battery and who has two or more previous convictions for assaulting or assaulting and battering his or her spouse or former spouse, an individual with whom he or she has or has had a dating relationship, an individual with whom he or she has had a child in common, or a resident or former resident of his or her household is guilty of a felony.

An individual who assaults his or her spouse or former spouse, an individual with whom he or she has or has had a dating relationship, an individual with whom he or she has had a child in common, or a resident or former resident of the same household without a weapon and inflicts serious or aggravated injury upon that individual without intending to commit murder or to inflict great bodily harm less than murder is guilty of a misdemeanor.

An individual who commits an aggravated assault and battery and who has one or more previous convictions for assaulting or assaulting and battering his or her spouse or former spouse, an individual with whom he or she has or has had a dating relationship, an individual with whom he or she has had a child in common, or a resident or former resident of the same household is guilty of a felony.

Persons Included in the Definition

Citation: Comp. Laws § 400.1501‘Family or household member’ includes any of the following:

• A spouse or former spouse
• An individual with whom the person resides or has resided
• An individual with whom the person has or had a dating relationship
• An individual with whom the person is or has engaged in a sexual relationship
• An individual to whom the person is related or was formerly related by marriage
• An individual with whom the person has a child in common
• The minor child of an individual described above

‘Dating relationship’ means frequent, intimate associations primarily characterized by the expectation of affectional involvement. ‘Dating relationship’ does not include a casual relationship or an ordinary fraternization between two individuals in a business or social context.

Current Through March 2015

Citation: Comp. Laws Ann. § 722.625

A person acting in good faith who makes a report, cooperates in an investigation, or assists in any other requirement pursuant to the reporting laws is immune from civil or criminal liability that might otherwise be incurred by that action.

A person making a report or assisting in any other requirement of the reporting laws is presumed to have acted in good faith.

This immunity from civil or criminal liability extends only to acts done according to the reporting laws and does not extend to a negligent act that causes personal injury or death, or to the malpractice of a physician that results in personal injury or death.

Current Through February 2013

Individual Responsibility to Report

Citation: Comp. Laws § 722.623(1)A mandated reporter who has reasonable cause to suspect child abuse or neglect shall make immediately, by telephone or otherwise, an oral report, or cause an oral report to be made, of the suspected child abuse or neglect to the Family Independence Agency (department). Within 72 hours after making the oral report, the reporting person shall file a written report.

Content of Reports

Citation: Comp. Laws § 722.623(2)The written report shall contain:

• The name of the child and a description of the abuse or neglect
• If possible, the names and addresses of the child’s parents, guardian, or persons with whom the child resides, and the child’s age
• Other information available to the reporting person that might establish the cause of the abuse or neglect, and the manner in which the abuse or neglect occurred

Reporting Suspicious Deaths

Citation: Comp. Laws § 722.628bIf a central registry case involves a child’s death, the department shall refer the case to the prosecuting attorney for the county in which the child is located.

Reporting Substance-Exposed Infants

Citation: Comp. Laws § 722.623aA mandated reporter who knows, or from the child’s symptoms has reasonable cause to suspect, that a newborn infant has any amount of alcohol, a controlled substance, or a metabolite of a controlled substance in his or her body, shall report to the department in the same manner as other reports.

Agency Receiving the Reports

Citation: Comp. Laws § 722.623The written report required in this section shall be mailed or otherwise transmitted to the county department of the county in which the child suspected of being abused or neglected is found.

Upon receipt of a written report of suspected child abuse or neglect, the department may provide copies to the prosecuting attorney and the probate court of the counties in which the child suspected of being abused or neglected resides and is found.

Initial Screening Decisions

Citation: Pol. Man, §§ 712-1; 712-8Intake begins when a complaint alleging child abuse and/or neglect is received by the department. The intake process is focused on initial fact gathering and evaluation of information to determine the validity of the complaint and to assess the level of risk to the child. Evaluation of the complaint information determines the nature and priority of the initial response.

In order for a report to be assigned for Child Protective Services (CPS) investigation, the complaint allegations must minimally meet the child protection law definitions of child abuse and/or neglect to be appropriate for assignment. The elements that must be present in order to assign a complaint for investigation include allegations of harm or threatened harm to a child’s health or welfare through nonaccidental or neglectful behavior by a person responsible for the child’s health and welfare.

Agency Conducting the Assessment/Investigation

Citation: Comp. Laws § 722.628Within 24 hours after receiving a report, the department shall refer the report to the prosecuting attorney and the local law enforcement agency if the report indicates that the suspected abuse or neglect was a criminal act, was committed by an individual who is not a person responsible for the child’s health or welfare, or involves allowing a child to be exposed to methamphetamine production, or shall commence an investigation of the child suspected of being abused or neglected or exposed to or who has had contact with methamphetamine production.

In conducting its investigation, the department shall seek the assistance of and cooperate with law enforcement officials within 24 hours after becoming aware that one or more of the following conditions exist:

• Abuse or neglect is the suspected cause of a child’s death.
• The child is the victim of suspected sexual abuse or sexual exploitation.
• Abuse or neglect resulting in severe physical injury to the child requires medical treatment or hospitalization.
• Law enforcement intervention is necessary for the protection of the child, a department employee, or another person involved in the investigation.
• The alleged perpetrator of the child’s injury is not a person responsible for the child’s health or welfare.
• The child has been exposed to or had contact with methamphetamine production.

Involvement of law enforcement officials under this section does not relieve or prevent the department from proceeding with its investigation or treatment if there is reasonable cause to suspect that the child abuse or neglect was committed by a person responsible for the child’s health or welfare.

Assessment/Investigation Procedures

Citation: Comp. Laws § 722.628; Pol. Man. § 713-1At the time that an investigator contacts an individual about whom a report has been made, the investigator shall advise that individual of the investigator’s name, whom the investigator represents, and the specific complaints or allegations made against the individual.

In the course of its investigation, the department shall determine if the child is abused or neglected.

In regulation: CPS must:

• Take prompt action on every complaint assigned for investigation
• Commence the investigation within 24 hours
• Assess child safety and the services needs of the family
• Include contacts with the reporting person, the family, and other informational sources, as needed, for verification of the accuracy of the complaint and clarification of the situation
• Observe the scene (at the home or a location other than the home) where the alleged abuse/neglect occurred, as well as any objects alleged to have been involved
• Observe and document each caregiver and alleged perpetrator’s photo identification
• Verify and document the dates of birth given by all adults living within the home, including, but not limited to, noncustodial and putative parents, as well as any adults associated with the case
• Conduct a thorough inquiry of family background, including a central registry clearance on parents and all persons listed on the complaint who are age 18 or older and a criminal history check

Timeframes for Completing Investigations

Citation: Pol. Man. § 713-9Investigation must be completed 30 days from the department’s receipt of the complaint. This includes completion of the safety assessment, risk assessment, and family and child assessments of needs and strengths.

Classification of Reports

Citation: Comp. Laws § 722.628dAllegations of child abuse may be classified as follows:

• Category V: Services not needed. There is no evidence of child abuse or neglect.
• Category IV: Community services recommended. There is not a preponderance of evidence of child abuse or neglect, but there is an indication of future risk of harm to the child.
• Category III: Community services needed. There is a preponderance of evidence of child abuse or neglect and an indication of low or moderate risk of future harm to the child.
• Category II: Child protective services required. There is evidence of child abuse or neglect and an indication of high or intensive risk of future harm to the child. The department shall open a protective services case, provide services, and list the perpetrator on the central registry.
• Category I: Court petition required. There is evidence of child abuse or neglect, the child is not safe, and a petition for removal is needed.

Current Through April 2016

Citation: Comp. Laws § 722.623aA person who is required to report suspected child abuse or neglect and who knows, or from the child’s symptoms has reasonable cause to suspect, that a newborn infant has any amount of alcohol, a controlled substance, or a metabolite of a controlled substance in his or her body shall report to the department in the same manner as required of other reports.

A report is not required under this section if the person knows that the alcohol, controlled substance, or metabolite, or the child’s symptoms, are the result of medical treatment administered to the newborn infant or his or her mother.

Current Through August 2014

Making The Appointment

Citation: Comp. Laws. §§ 722.630; 712A.17dIn each case filed under the child protection act in which judicial proceedings are necessary, the court shall appoint a lawyer-guardian ad litem (GAL) to represent the child. A lawyer-GAL represents the child and has powers and duties in relation to that representation as set forth in § 712A.17d.

If, after discussion between the child and his or her lawyer-GAL, the lawyer-GAL determines that the child’s interests as identified by the child are inconsistent with the lawyer-GAL’s determination of the child’s best interests, the lawyer-GAL shall communicate the child’s position to the court. If the court considers the appointment appropriate considering the child’s age and maturity and the nature of the inconsistency between the child’s and the lawyer-GAL’s identification of the child’s interests, the court may appoint an attorney for the child. An attorney appointed under this subsection serves in addition to the child’s lawyer-GAL.

The Use of Court-Appointed Special Advocates (CASAs)

Citation:This issue is not addressed in the statutes reviewed.

Qualifications/Training

Citation: Comp. Laws § 712A.17dThe lawyer-GAL shall participate in training in early childhood, child, and adolescent development.

Specific Duties

Citation: Comp. Laws § 712A.17dA lawyer-GAL’s duty is to the child and not the court. The lawyer-GAL’s powers and duties include at least the following:

• To serve as the independent representative for the child’s best interests and be entitled to full and active participation in all aspects of the litigation and access to all relevant information regarding the child
• To determine the facts of the case by conducting an independent investigation, including, but not limited to, interviewing the child, social workers, family members, and others as necessary, and reviewing relevant reports and other information
• To meet with or observe the child and assess the child’s needs and wishes with regard to the representation and the issues in the case before all hearings
• To explain to the child, taking into account the child’s ability to understand the proceedings, the lawyer-GAL’s role
• To file all necessary pleadings and papers and independently call witnesses on the child’s behalf
• To attend all hearings and substitute representation for the child only with court approval
• To make a determination regarding the child’s best interests and advocate for those best interests, regardless of whether the lawyer-GAL’s determination reflects the child’s wishes
• To inform the court of the child’s wishes and preferences
• To monitor the implementation of case plans and court orders and determine whether services the court ordered for the child or the child’s family are being provided in a timely manner and are accomplishing their purpose
• To identify common interests among the parties and, to the extent possible, promote a cooperative resolution of the matter through consultation with the child’s parent, foster care provider, guardian, and caseworker
• To request authorization by the court to pursue issues on the child’s behalf that do not arise specifically from the court appointment

The agency case file shall be reviewed before disposition and before the hearing for termination of parental rights. Updated materials shall be reviewed as provided to the court and parties. The supervising agency shall provide documentation of progress relating to all aspects of the last court-ordered treatment plan, including copies of evaluations and therapy reports and verification of parenting time not later than 5 business days before the scheduled hearing.

The child’s wishes are relevant to the lawyer-GAL’s determination of the child’s best interests, and the lawyer-GAL shall weigh the child’s wishes according to the child’s competence and maturity. Consistent with the law governing attorney-client privilege, the lawyer-GAL shall inform the court as to the child’s wishes and preferences.

The lawyer-GAL shall inform the court if services are not being provided in a timely manner, if the family fails to take advantage of services, or if the services provided are not accomplishing their intended purpose.

How the Representative Is Compensated

Citation: Comp. Laws § 712A.18(5)If the court appoints an attorney to represent a juvenile, parent, guardian, or custodian, the court may require in an order entered under this section that the juvenile, parent, guardian, or custodian reimburse the court for attorney fees.

Current Through April 2014

When Case Plans Are Required

Citation: Comp. Laws § 712A.18fBefore the court enters an order of disposition, the agency shall prepare a case service plan that shall be available to the court and all the parties to the proceeding.

Who May Participate in the Case Planning Process

Citation: Comp. Laws § 712A.13a; Foster Care Pol. Man. § 722-06The case service plan shall be developed by an agency and shall include services to be provided by and responsibilities and obligations of the agency, as well as activities, responsibilities, and obligations of the parent.

The case service plan may be referred to using names different from ‘case service plan’ including, but not limited to, a parent/agency agreement, a parent/agency treatment plan, or a service agreement.

In policy: Casework service requires the engagement of the family in development of the case service plan. This engagement must include an open conversation between all parents/guardians and the caseworker in:

• Discussing needs and strengths
• Establishing the case service plan
• Reaching an understanding of what is required to meet the goals of the case service plan
• Discussing concurrent permanency planning

Parental participation in case service plan development is required. Parental engagement is an invaluable tool for achieving an early return home for children in foster care. Parents must be encouraged to actively participate in developing the Parent-Agency Treatment Plan and Service Agreement section of the case service plan.

Contents of a Case Plan

Comp. Laws § 712A.18f; Foster Care Pol. Man. § 722-06The case service plan shall provide for placing the child in the most familylike setting available and in as close proximity to the child’s parents’ home as is consistent with the child’s best interests and special needs. The case service plan shall include, but is not limited to, the following:

• The type of home or institution in which the child is to be placed and the reasons for the selected placement
• Efforts to be made by the child’s parent to enable the child to return to his or her home
• Efforts to be made by the agency to return the child to his or her home
• The schedule of services to be provided to the parent, the child, and if the child is to be placed in foster care, the foster parent, to facilitate the child’s return to his or her home or to facilitate the child’s permanent placement
• Unless parenting time, even if supervised, would be harmful to the child as determined by the court, a schedule for regular and frequent parenting time between the child and his or her parent, which shall not be less than once every 7 days
• Conditions that would limit or preclude placement or parenting time with a parent who is required by court order to register under the sex offenders registration act

In policy: The Parent-Agency Treatment Plan and Service Agreement section of the case service plan must state specifically what the parents will need to do to achieve reunification and what the agency will do in support of parental objectives. The parent-agency treatment plan and service agreement must be:

• Specific to the individual needs of the family and children
• Inclusive of the family’s viewpoint
• Written in a manner that is easily understood by all parties

There must be a plan for ensuring that each child who is placed out of his or her own home receives safe and proper care and services. The plan must include documentation of all of the following:

• The services provided to the parents, child, and foster parent or relative caregivers in order to improve the conditions in the parent’s home to facilitate a safe return of the child to his or her own home or the permanent placement of the child
• The needs of the children while in foster care
• The services to the children and foster parents or relative caregivers to meet those needs
• The appropriateness of the services that have been provided to the child
• A statement that safe and proper care and services must be provided

Current Through January 2016

Schedule of Hearings

Citation: Comp. Laws §§ 712A.19; 712A.19aReview hearings shall be held:

• No more than 182 days after the child is place under the jurisdiction of the court
• Every 91 days after that for the first year that the child remains in care
• After the first year, no later than 182 days from the immediately preceding review hearing and every 182 days thereafter until the case is dismissed
• Every 182 days if the child is in a permanent foster family agreement or placed with a relative

A permanency hearing shall be held:

• Within 12 months if a child remains in foster care and parental rights to the child have not been terminated
• Every 12 months thereafter during the continuation of foster care
• Within 30 days after a judicial determination that reasonable efforts to reunite the child and family are not required

Persons Entitled to Attend Hearings

Citation: Comp. Laws §§ 712A.19; 712A.19a
Written notice of the permanency hearing and a statement of the purposes of the hearing, including a notice that the hearing may result in further proceedings to terminate parental rights, shall be served upon all of the following:

• The agency
• The foster parent or custodian of the child
• If the parental rights to the child have not been terminated, the child’s parents
• If the child has a guardian, the guardian for the child
• If the child has a guardian ad litem, the guardian ad litem
• If Tribal affiliation has been determined, the elected leader of the Indian Tribe
• The attorney for the child, the attorneys for each party, and the prosecuting attorney if the prosecuting attorney has appeared in the case
• If the child is age 11 or older, the child
• Other persons as the court may direct

Written notice of a review hearing shall be served upon all of the above. In addition, if a nonparent adult is required to comply with the case service plan, the nonparent adult must receive notice.

Determinations Made at Hearings

Citation: Comp. Laws §§ 712A.19; 712A.19aAt a review hearing, the court shall review on the record all of the following:

• Compliance with the case service plan including the services provided or offered to the child and the child’s parent
• Compliance with the case service plan with respect to parenting time with the child
• Likely harm to the child if the child continues to be separated from the child’s parent, guardian, or custodian
• Likely harm to the child if the child is returned to the child’s parent, guardian, or custodian
• The extent of progress made toward alleviating or mitigating the conditions that caused the child to be placed in foster care
• The continuing necessity and appropriateness of the child’s placement

At the permanency planning hearing, the court shall:

• Review the status of the child and the progress being made toward the child’s return home
• Consider whether the child should be placed in the permanent custody of the court
• Obtain the child’s views regarding the permanency plan in a manner that is appropriate to the child’s age
• In the case of a child who will not be returned home, consider in-State and out-of-State placement options
• In the case of a child placed out-of-State, determine whether the out-of-State placement continues to be appropriate and in the child’s best interests
• Ensure that the agency is providing appropriate services to assist a child who will transition from foster care to independent living

Permanency Options

Citation: Comp. Laws §§ 712A.19a; 712.19cThe court may consider the following permanency options:

• Return to the parent
• Adoption or other permanent placement
• Appointment of a legal guardian
• If termination of parental rights is not in the child’s best interest, an alternative placement plan, including limited or long-term foster care

Current Through March 2016

Citation: Comp. Laws § 722.23As used in the act, ‘best interests of the child’ means the sum total of the following factors to be considered, evaluated, and determined by the court:

• The love, affection, and other emotional ties existing between the parties involved and the child
• The capacity and disposition of the parties involved to give the child love, affection, and guidance and to continue the education and raising of the child in his or her religion or creed, if any
• The capacity and disposition of the parties involved to provide the child with food, clothing, medical care, or other remedial care recognized and permitted under the laws of this State in place of medical care and other material needs
• The length of time the child has lived in a stable, satisfactory environment and the desirability of maintaining continuity
• The permanence, as a family unit, of the existing or proposed custodial home or homes
• The moral fitness of the parties involved
• The mental and physical health of the parties involved
• The home, school, and community record of the child
• The reasonable preference of the child, if the court considers the child to be of sufficient age to express preference
• The willingness of each of the parties to facilitate and encourage a close and continuing parent-child relationship between the child and the other parent or the child and parents
• Domestic violence, regardless of whether the violence was directed against or witnessed by the child
• Any other factor considered by the court to be relevant to a particular child custody dispute

Current Through January 2013

Circumstances That Are Grounds for Termination of Parental Rights

Citation: Comp. Laws § 712A.19bThe court may terminate a parent’s parental rights if the court finds, by clear and convincing evidence, one or more of the following:

• The child has been deserted.
• The child or child’s sibling has suffered physical injury or physical or sexual abuse under one or more of the following circumstances:
  • The parent’s act caused the abuse.
  • The parent had the opportunity to prevent the abuse and failed to do so.
  • A nonparent adult caused the abuse, and there is a reasonable likelihood that the child will suffer from injury or abuse by the nonparent adult in the foreseeable future if placed in the parent’s home.
• The parent has failed to correct the conditions that led to an adjudication of child abuse or neglect, and there is no reasonable likelihood that the conditions will be corrected within a reasonable time considering the child’s age.
• The parent has substantially failed, without good cause, to comply with a limited guardianship placement plan to the extent that the noncompliance has resulted in a disruption of the parent-child relationship.
• The child has a guardian, and both of the following have occurred:
  • The parent has failed, without good cause, to provide regular and substantial support for the child for 2 years or more.
  • The parent has failed to regularly visit, contact, or communicate with the child, without good cause, for 2 years or more.
• The parent, without regard to intent, fails to provide proper care or custody for the child and there is no reasonable expectation that the parent will be able to provide proper care and custody within a reasonable time considering the child’s age.
• The parent is imprisoned for such a period that the child will be deprived of a normal home for more than 2 years, and the parent has not provided for the child’s proper care and custody, and there is no reasonable expectation that the parent will be able to provide proper care and custody within a reasonable time considering the child’s age.
• The parent’s parental rights to one or more siblings of the child or another child have been terminated due to serious and chronic neglect or physical or sexual abuse, and prior attempts to rehabilitate the parent has been unsuccessful.
• There is a reasonable likelihood, based on the conduct or capacity of the child’s parent, that the child will be harmed if he or she is returned to the home of the parent.
• The parent abused the child or a sibling of the child and the abuse included one or more of the following:
  • Abandonment of a young child
  • Criminal sexual conduct involving penetration, attempted penetration, or assault with intent to penetrate
  • Battering, torture, or other severe physical abuse
  • Loss or serious impairment of an organ or limb
  • Life threatening injury
  • Murder or voluntary manslaughter
  • Aiding and abetting, attempting to commit, conspiring to commit, or soliciting murder or voluntary manslaughter

Circumstances That Are Exceptions to Termination of Parental Rights

Citation: Comp. Laws § 712A.19aIf the child has been in foster care under the responsibility of the State for 15 of the most recent 22 months, the court shall order the agency to initiate proceedings to terminate parental rights. The court is not required to order the agency to initiate proceedings to terminate parental rights if one or more of the following apply:

• The child is being cared for by relatives.
• The case service plan documents a compelling reason for determining that filing a petition to terminate parental rights would not be in the best interests of the child. Compelling reasons for not filing a petition to terminate parental rights include, but are not limited to, all of the following:
  • Adoption is not the appropriate permanency goal for the child.
  • No grounds to file a petition to terminate parental rights exist.
  • The child is an unaccompanied refugee minor, as defined in 45 CFR 400.11.
  • There are international legal obligations or compelling foreign policy reasons that preclude terminating parental rights.
• The State has not provided the child’s family, consistent with the time period in the case service plan, with the services the State considers necessary for the child’s safe return to his or her home, if reasonable efforts are required.

Circumstances Allowing Reinstatement of Parental Rights

Citation: Comp. Laws §§ 712A.20; 712A.21The court in all cases involving custody shall state in the order for disposition or any supplemental order of disposition whether the child is placed in the temporary or permanent custody of the court. If the child is placed in the permanent custody of the court, all parental rights are terminated, though such rights may be reinstated by a supplemental order of disposition after rehearing pursuant to § 712A.21.

At any time while the juvenile is under the jurisdiction of the court, an interested person may file a petition for a rehearing upon all matters coming within the provisions of this chapter. Upon the rehearing, the court may affirm, modify, or set aside any order reviewed under this section. If parental rights have been terminated by an order entered in the proceedings and custody of the juvenile has been removed from the parents, guardian, or other person, the petition for rehearing shall be filed no later than 20 days after the date of entry of the order terminating parental rights. The petition shall set forth in detail the place, manner, and all other information requested by the court in reference to the proposed future custody of the juvenile. The rehearing shall be conducted in accordance with the provisions of this chapter relating to the conduct of original hearings. The court may enter an order for supplemental disposition while the juvenile remains under the court’s jurisdiction.

The term ‘interested person’ includes a member of a local foster care review board to which that juvenile’s case has been assigned.

Current Through February 2013

Infant’s Age

Citation: Comp. Laws § 712.1

A newborn may be relinquished. The term ‘newborn’ means a child who a physician reasonably believes to be not more than 72 hours old.

Who May Relinquish the Infant

Citation: Comp. Laws §§ 712.1; 712.3

A parent may surrender the child. The term ‘surrender’ means to leave a newborn with an emergency service provider without expressing an intent to return for the newborn.

Who May Receive the Infant

Citation: Comp. Laws § 712.1

The infant may be surrendered to an emergency service provider. An emergency service provider includes a uniformed or otherwise identified employee or contractor of a fire department, hospital, or police station when that individual is inside the premises and on duty. Emergency service provider also includes a paramedic or an emergency medical technician when either of those individuals is responding to a 911 emergency call.

Responsibilities of the Safe Haven Provider

Citation: Comp. Laws §§ 712.3; 750.135(2)

The safe haven provider will do all of the following:

• Take the child into temporary protective custody
• Provide the child with any necessary care and transport the child to a hospital if necessary
• Inform the parent that by surrendering the child, he or she is relinquishing rights to the child to a child-placing agency for adoption
• Provide written material that informs the parent about rights and available services
• Encourage the parent to provide family and medical information
• Notify a child-placing agency about the child
• Make a child protection report if abuse of the child is suspected or if the examining physician suspects that the child is not a newborn

Immunity for the Provider

Citation: Comp. Laws § 712.2

A hospital and a child-placing agency, and their agents and employees, are immune in a civil action for damages for an act or omission in accepting or transferring a newborn under this chapter, except for an act or omission constituting gross negligence or willful or wanton misconduct. To the extent not protected by the immunity conferred by §§ 691.1401 to 691.1415, an employee or contractor of a fire department or police station has the same immunity that this subsection provides to a hospital’s or child-placing agency’s agent or employee.

Protection for Relinquishing Parent

Citation: Comp. Laws §§ 712.3; 750.135(2)

Information the parent provides to an emergency service provider will not be made public.

Except for a situation involving actual or suspected child abuse or child neglect, it is an affirmative defense to a prosecution for child abandonment that the child was not more than 72 hours old and was surrendered to an emergency service provider. A criminal investigation shall not be initiated solely on the basis of a newborn being surrendered to an emergency service provider.

Effect on Parental Rights

Citation: Comp. Laws §§ 712.3; 712.17

By surrendering the newborn, the parent is releasing the newborn to a child-placing agency to be placed for adoption.

The parent has 28 days after surrendering the newborn to petition the court to regain custody of the newborn. After the 28-day period to petition for custody elapses, there will be a hearing to determine and terminate parental rights.

There will be public notice of this hearing, and the notice will not contain the parent’s name. The parent will not receive personal notice of this hearing.

A parent who surrenders a newborn and does not file a custody action is presumed to have knowingly released his or her parental rights to the newborn. If the court finds by a preponderance of the evidence that the surrendering parent has knowingly released his or her rights to the child and that reasonable efforts were made to locate the nonsurrendering parent and a custody action has not been filed, the court shall enter an order terminating parental rights of the surrendering parent and the nonsurrendering parent.

Current Through December 2014

Definitions

Citation: Comp. Laws § 722.872The term ‘guardian’ means a person appointed by the court to act as a legal guardian for a child under § 712A.19a and 712A.19c.

The term ‘relative’ means an individual who is at least age 18 and related to the child by blood, marriage, or adoption, as grandparent, great-grandparent, great-great-grandparent, aunt or uncle, great-aunt or great-uncle, great-great-aunt or great-great-uncle, sibling, stepsibling, nephew or niece, first cousin or first cousin once removed, or the spouse of any of the above, even after the marriage has ended by death or divorce. The parent of a man who the court has found probable cause to believe is the putative father, if there is no man with legally established rights to the child, may be considered a relative under this act, but this is not to be considered as a finding of paternity and does not confer legal standing on the putative father.

Purpose of Guardianship

Citation: Pol. Man. GDM 600Juvenile guardianship is available for temporary and permanent court wards and State wards when reunification and adoption have been ruled out as permanency goals. The court, at a permanency planning hearing, may appoint a juvenile legal guardian for a child in lieu of terminating parental rights or returning the child home.

A Guardian’s Rights and Responsibilities

Citation: Comp. Laws § 700.5215A child’s guardian has the powers and responsibilities of a parent who is not deprived of custody of the parent’s child, except that a guardian is not legally obligated to provide for the child from the guardian’s own money and is not liable to third persons by reason of the parental relationship for the child’s acts.

The guardian shall facilitate the child’s education and social or other activities, and shall authorize medical or other professional care, treatment, or advice. A guardian is not liable by reason of this consent for injury to the child resulting from the negligence or acts of third persons unless it would be illegal for a parent to have consented.

A guardian may consent to the child’s marriage or adoption.

A guardian must report the condition of the child and of the child’s estate that is subject to the guardian’s possession or control as ordered by the court on petition of a person interested in the child’s welfare or as required by court rule. The report must detail the condition of the child, medical or mental health treatment or care to which the child was subjected, and what reason, if any, exists for the continuation of the guardianship.

Qualifying the Guardian

Citation: Comp. Laws §§ 712A.19a; 722.874If a child is placed in a guardian’s or a proposed guardian’s home, the court shall order the Department of Human Services to perform an investigation and file a written report of the investigation for a review. The court shall order the department to do all of the following:

• Perform a criminal record check within 7 days
• Perform a central registry clearance within 7 days
• Perform a home study and file a copy of the home study with the court within 30 days, unless a home study has been performed within the immediately preceding year

If a home study has been performed within the immediately preceding year, a copy of that home study shall be submitted to the court.

The guardian who receives guardianship assistance must be a licensed foster parent. The approval process shall include criminal record checks and child abuse and neglect central registry checks on the guardian and all adults living in the guardian’s home, as well as fingerprint-based criminal record checks on the guardian.

Procedures for Establishing Guardianship

Citation: Comp. Laws § 712A.19aIf the court determines at a permanency planning hearing that a child should not be returned to his or her parent, the court may order the agency to initiate proceedings to terminate parental rights. This is not required if the child is being cared for by relatives or adoption has been ruled out as an appropriate permanency goal for the child.

If the agency demonstrates that initiating the termination of parental rights to the child is clearly not in the child’s best interests, or the court does not order the agency to initiate termination of parental rights to the child, then the court, if the court determines that it is in the child’s best interests, may appoint a guardian for the child. The guardianship may continue until the child is emancipated.

Contents of a Guardianship Order

Citation: Comp. Laws § 722.875bLegal guardianship is a judicially created relationship, as provided for under §§ 712A.19a and 712A.19c, between the child and his or her guardian that is intended to be permanent and self-sustaining as evidenced by the transfer to the guardian the following parental rights with respect to the child:

• Protection
• Education
• Care and control of the person
• Custody of the person
• Decision-making

Modification/Revocation of Guardianship

Citation: Comp. Laws § 712A.19aThe court’s jurisdiction over a guardianship created under this section shall continue until released by court order. The court shall review a guardianship annually and may conduct additional reviews as the court considers necessary. The court may order the department or a court employee to conduct an investigation and file a written report of the investigation.

In making the determinations under this section, the court shall consider any written or oral information concerning the child from the child’s parent, guardian, custodian, foster parent, child-caring institution, relative with whom the child is placed, or guardian ad litem, in addition to any other evidence, including the appropriateness of parenting time, offered at the hearing.

The court may, on its own motion or upon petition from the department or the child’s lawyer guardian ad litem, hold a hearing to determine whether a guardianship appointed under this section shall be revoked.

A guardian may petition the court for permission to terminate the guardianship. A petition may include a request for appointment of a successor guardian.

After notice and hearing on a petition for revocation or permission to terminate the guardianship, if the court finds by a preponderance of evidence that continuation of the guardianship is not in the child’s best interests, the court shall revoke or terminate the guardianship and appoint a successor guardian or restore temporary legal custody to the department.

Eligibility for Guardianship Subsidy

Citation: Comp. Laws §§ 722.873; 722.874A child is eligible to receive guardianship assistance if it is determined that all of the following apply:

• The child has been removed from home, and a court has found that remaining at home would be contrary to the child’s welfare.
• The child has lived in the home of the prospective guardian for at least 6 consecutive months.
• Reunification or placing the child for adoption is not an appropriate option.
• The child has a strong attachment to the guardian, and the guardian has a strong commitment to caring permanently for the child.
• If the child has reached age 14, he or she has been consulted regarding the guardianship.

A guardian who meets all of the following criteria may receive guardianship assistance on behalf of an eligible child:

• The guardian is the child’s relative or legal custodian.
• The guardian is a licensed foster parent and approved for guardianship assistance by the department.
• The child has resided with the guardian in his or her home for a minimum of 6 months before the applying for guardianship assistance.

Only a relative who is a licensed foster parent caring for a child who is eligible to receive title IV-E-funded foster care payments for 6 consecutive months is eligible for Federal funding under title IV-E for guardianship assistance. A child who is not eligible for title IV-E funding is placed with a licensed foster parent, related or unrelated, may be eligible for State-funded guardianship assistance.

If a child is eligible for title IV-E-funded guardianship assistance has a sibling who is not eligible, both of the following apply:

• The child and any of the child’s siblings may be placed in the same relative guardianship arrangement if the department and the relative agree on the appropriateness of the arrangement for the sibling.
• Title IV-E-funded relative guardianship assistance payments may be paid on behalf of each sibling placed in the home.

Links to Agency Policies

Michigan Department of Human Services:

• Relative Caregiving: What You Need to Know (PDF – 4,293 KB)
• Child Guardianship Manual (PDF – 63 KB)

Current Through July 2013

Relative Placement for Foster Care and Guardianship

Citation: Comp. Laws §§ 710.22; 722.954aThe term ‘relative’ means an individual who is related to the child within the fifth degree by marriage, blood, or adoption.

Before determining placement of a child in its care, a supervising agency shall give special consideration and preference to a child’s relative or relatives who are willing to care for the child; are fit to do so; and would meet the child’s developmental, emotional, and physical needs. The supervising agency’s placement decision shall be made in the best interests of the child.

Requirements for Placement with Relatives

Citation: Comp. Laws § 722.954aUpon removal of the child from the home, the supervising agency shall, within 30 days, determine placement with a fit and appropriate relative who would meet the child’s developmental, emotional, and physical needs as an alternative to foster care.

The notification of relatives shall do all of the following:

• Specify that the child has been removed from the custody of the child’s parent
• Explain the options the relative has to participate in the care and placement of the child, including any option that may be lost by failing to respond to the notification
• Describe the requirements and benefits, including the amount of monetary benefits, of becoming a licensed foster family home
• Describe how the relative may subsequently enter into an agreement with the department for guardianship assistance

Requirements for Placement of Siblings

Citation: Comp. Laws § 722.118b; Admin. Code R 400.12404Upon the recommendation of a local foster care review board or a child-placing agency, the department may grant a variance to one or more licensing rules or statutes regulating foster family homes or foster family group homes to allow the child and one or more siblings to remain or be placed together. If the department determines that such a placement would be in the child’s best interests and that the variance from the particular licensing rules or statutes would not jeopardize the health or safety of a child residing in the foster family home or foster family group home, the department may grant the variance.

In regulation: In selecting an appropriate placement for a child, an agency shall consider the following factors:

• The permanency goal for the child
• The physical, emotional, and educational needs of the child
• The expressed preferences of the foster child
• Placement of the child with relatives
• Placement of the child with siblings
• The continuity of relationships, including relationships with parents, siblings, relatives, foster parents, and other persons significant to the child

Relatives Who May Adopt

Citation: Comp. Laws §§ 710.27; 710.23aA relative is a person related to the child within the fifth degree through blood, marriage, or adoption. This also includes a stepparent.

A parent or guardian having legal and physical custody of a child may make a formal placement of the child for adoption with a stepparent or a relative under section 51 of this chapter.

Requirements for Adoption by Relatives

Citation: Comp. Laws § 710.27A written report containing nonidentifying and other relevant information about the child is not necessary when the child is adopted by a relative.

Current Through March 2016

What Are Reasonable Efforts

Citation: Comp. Laws § 712A.18fReasonable efforts are measures taken to preserve and reunify the family and may include:

• Efforts to be made by the parents
• Efforts to be made by the agency
• A schedule of services to be provided, including in-home services
• A schedule of parenting time between the child and the parent, if appropriate

When Reasonable Efforts Are Required

Citation: Comp. Laws § 712A.18fReasonable efforts must be made:

• To prevent the child’s removal from his or her home
• To rectify conditions that caused removal of the child from his or her home

When Reasonable Efforts Are NOT Required

Citation: Comp. Laws §§ 712A.19a; 722.638Reasonable efforts to reunify the child and family must be made in all cases, except when any of the following apply:

• There is a judicial determination that the parent has subjected the child to aggravated circumstances, as provided in § 722.638, including:
  • Abandonment of a young child
  • Criminal sexual conduct involving penetration, attempted penetration, or assault with intent to penetrate
  • Battering, torture, or other severe physical abuse
  • Loss or serious impairment of an organ or limb
  • Life-threatening injury
• The parent has been convicted of one or more of the following:
  • Murder of another child of the parent
  • Voluntary manslaughter of another child of the parent
  • Aiding or abetting in the murder or voluntary manslaughter of another child of the parent, the attempted murder of the child or another child of the parent, or the conspiracy or solicitation to commit the murder of the child or another child of the parent
  • A felony assault that results in serious bodily injury to the child or another child of the parent
• The parent is required by court order to register under the sex offenders registration act.
• The parent has had rights to the child’s siblings involuntarily terminated.

Current Through February 2015

Who Can Nominate a Standby Guardian

Citation: Comp. Laws § 700.5205The court may appoint a limited guardian for an unmarried minor upon the petition of the minor’s parent or parents.

How to Establish a Standby Guardian

Citation: Comp. Laws § 700.5205The court may appoint a limited guardian for an unmarried minor upon the petition of the minor’s parent or parents if all of the following requirements are met:

• The parents with custody of the minor consent or, in the case of only one parent having custody of the minor, the sole parent consents to the appointment of a limited guardian.
• The parent or parents voluntarily consent to the suspension of their parental rights.
• The court approves a limited guardianship placement plan agreed to by both of the following parties:
  • The parents with custody of the minor or, in the case of only one parent having custody of the minor, the sole parent who has custody of the minor
  • The person or persons whom the court will appoint as the minor’s limited guardian

How Standby Authority is Activated

Citation: Comp. Laws § 700.5205The parent or parents of a minor who desire to have the court appoint a limited guardian and the person or persons who desire to be appointed the limited guardian must develop a limited guardianship placement plan, using a form given by the State court administrator. A limited guardianship placement plan form must include a notice that informs a parent who is a party to the plan that substantial failure to comply with the plan without good cause may result in the termination of the parent’s parental rights.

The proposed limited guardianship placement plan shall be attached to the petition requesting the court to appoint a limited guardian. The limited guardianship placement plan shall include provisions concerning all of the following:

• The reason the parent or parents are requesting the court to appoint a limited guardian for the minor
• Parenting time and contact with the minor by his or her parent or parents sufficient to maintain a parent and child relationship
• The duration of the limited guardianship
• Financial support for the minor
• Any other provisions that the parties agree to include in the plan

Involvement of the Noncustodial Parent

Citation:
This issue is not addressed in the statutes reviewed.

Authority Relationship of the Parent and the Standby

Citation: Comp. Laws §§ 700.5205(2)(b); 5206(4)The limited guardianship placement plan shall provide for parenting time and contact with the minor by his or her parent or parents sufficient to maintain a parent and child relationship.

A limited guardian appointed under this section has all of the powers and duties enumerated in § 5215 except that a minor’s limited guardian shall not consent to marriage or adoption of the minor ward or to the release of the minor ward for adoption.

Withdrawing Guardianship

Citation: Comp. Laws § 700.5206(3)The voluntary suspension of parental rights under § 5205 does not prevent the parent or parents from filing a petition to terminate the limited guardianship at any time as provided in § 5208. Appointment of a limited guardian under this section is a continuing appointment.