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In Dependency Cases Parents Are Entitled to a Hearing Before their Biological Children Are Put Up for Adoption, Even if There Has Not Been Continuous Contact

By Walin & Klarich

A recent California Court of Appeals decision held that a biological parent may request a hearing before his or her child is put up for adoption by the state. In M.T. v. Superior Court (San Francisco Dept. of Human Services) the Court of Appeals cited to the California Welfare and Institutions Code (WIC) Section 366.26 for the proposition that the parent has the right to the hearing and must have the opportunity to present evidence that the adoption would not be in the best interest of the child. The court noted that the father in this case had been absent from his children?s lives for over 5 years and, during that time, the children had been living in foster care. The court ruled that even with the passing of time and the children?s stay in foster care, the father still had parental rights and had the opportunity to present evidence that adoption would not be in their best interest...continue to full post

Full post as published by Southern California Criminal Defense Blog on January 11, 2010 (boomark / email).