Question and Answer

1. Adjudication, what is it? Types? Process and time frame in which it should happen?

The adjudicatory hearing is a trial in front of the judge in which the court determines whether or not the factual allegations of the petition have been established by the standard of clear and convincing evidence.

An adjudicatory hearing should be scheduled within 30 days of the child coming into care. At the latest, the hearing should occur 90 days after the child came into care. Although, if a case is complicated or a case of severe abuse, the court may allow more time in order for the deposition of medical experts or some other type of proof to be developed by either side.

2. Parent's right to "Appeal" and the process including time frame?

If a magistrate hears the case, any party in a dependency proceeding has the right to a de novo (or brand new) hearing before the juvenile court judge of the magistrate's decision. They have 5 days from the date of the entry of the order, excluding non-judicial days, to appeal that order to the judge.

The final order from the juvenile court judge can be appealed to the Circuit Court. That appeal has to be filed within 10 days.

In the case of a termination of parental rights case, the appeal from the juvenile court goes directly to the Court of Appeals and the parties have 30 days to file that Notice of Appeal.

So TPR cases get appealed directly to the Court of Appeals. Parents have a right to that appeal, but there is no right to a hearing before the Tenn. Supreme Court. They can ask to have a Court of Appeals ruling reviewed by the Tenn. Supreme Court, but the Supreme Court gets to decide whether or not to hear the case.

3. What happens if after "Parental Rights" are terminated and another child is born to that parent before or during the process to adoption does this cause a delay or problem with siblings already in the process or is there something in policy that still will want these children placed together? What about after adoption is this an option?

This question may be one for a program person to answer, rather than a legal person.

I will just address the legal issues.

Once the termination has been completed and the child is in the full guardianship of DCS, DCS has the authority to place for adoption and to consent to the adoption. Later born children do not have a legal impact on the child who has been freed for adoption, but this may be a program consideration. You may want to ask Elizabeth Black or John Johnson about that.