CJI

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CJI

• Reducing Trauma in Children
• by
• Ensuring Involvement of Fathers
• Nancy K. Jones, Hennepin County Attorneys Office
• Kevin McTigue, Hennepin County Human Services
  Public Health Dept.

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DILIGENT EFFORTS

• Identify locate both parents
• Ask custodial parent for info
• Contact Child Support Agency
• Search FAR

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REASONABLE EFFORTS

• Identify
• Locate
• Offer Services
• Both parents

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REASONABLE EFFORTS

• Assess fathers willingness capability to
  provide care
• May include Netstudy
• Consider only if genetic test
• Require paternity establishment
• Obtain authority from mother or court for
  placement

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REASONABLE EFFORTS

• Prepare OHPP for each parent if child cannot be
  placed with either
• Report to court diligent efforts to ID locate
  parent if identity and/or
  whereabouts unknown

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Assessment/Background Study

• Must be reasonable cause
  before Netstudy
• Info that creates
  articulable suspicion
• Must believe placement with
  father would endanger child
  before denial
• 15 days notice to father opportunity to be
  heard
• Consider Minn. Stat. 518.179

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Adjudicated Father/Rule

• Determined by court or Recognition of Parentage
  to be biological father

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Recognition of Parentage

• Requires notarized signatures of both parents
  attesting to childs paternity
• Same as court order adjudicating paternity if
  filed w/ MN Dept of Health
• Except when only creates presumption
• Does not give father right to visitation or
  custody

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KINSHIP SEARCH

• Includes maternal paternal relatives even if
  paternity not adjudicated
• Important friend with whom child resided or had
  significant contact
• Members of extended family as defined by law or
  custom of tribe

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Presumed Father

• Married to childs mother when child born
• Child born w/n 280 days of divorce
• Marries mother after child born on b.c.
• Declaration of Parentage pre 8-1-95
• Lived with held child out as his

• ROP but mother married
• More than one ROP
• ROP other presumed father
• ROP minor parent

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GENETIC TESTING

• Treat as if presumed father if positive test
• Right to notice
• Right to assessment
• Right to day to day care
• Duty to cooperate with establishment paternity

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Alleged Father

• Claimed by party or participant to be father
• Child born prior to 1-1-98
• Filed affidavit of intent to retain parental
  rights w/n 90 days of childs birth
• Child born on after 1-1-98
• Registered with Fathers Adoption Registry w/n 30
  days of childs birth

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Fathers Adoption Registry

• Mn Department of Health
• Register w/n 30 days childs birth or
• Lose right to notice of adoption
• Lose right to notice of Juvenile Protection TPR
  or permanency proceeding
• Certificate of search required for adoption
• Or certified copy of TPR that certificate of
  search filed w/court in Juvenile Protection
  proceeding

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Legal Parent per 260C

• Legal parent/child relationship that confers
  rights, privileges, duties obligations
• Presumed father based on marriage no action to
  declare nonexistence
• Presumed father because lived with held out as
  father court adjudication or ROP
• Competing presumptions court adjudication or
  ROP
• No presumption but court adjudication or ROP
• Positive genetic test court adjudication or ROP

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Fathers I.C.W.A.

• Biological parent
• Unmarried father not parent unless paternity is
  acknowledged or established
• Tribal customs/laws control on how to
  acknowledge or establish paternity

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Juvenile Protection Petition

• Names/Addresses parents
• Birth, legally adjudicated or adoptive
• Name/address legal custodian
• Person who by court order or statute has sole or
  joint legal or physical custody
• ICWA status
• Parties
• Participants

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Legal Custodian

• Joint legal/physical custody if married not
  divorced
• Equal rights to parenting time/visitation
• Unless court order establishing otherwise
• Mother sole legal/physical custodian if not
  married to father until c.o. otherwise
• Father thru ROP or adjudication only has
  custody/parenting time per c.o.

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COURT PARTIES

• CHIPS
• Sole or joint legal or physical custodian
• Permanency/TPR
• Parents
• Adjudicated father
• Presumed father
• Filed with Fathers Registry
• Entitled to notice of adoption proceeding

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COURT PARTICIPANTS

• CHIPS
• Noncustodial
• Presumed
• Adjudicated
• Alleged
• PERMANENCY/TPR
• Alleged Father per Rule
• A/F no right to notice per statute

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Court Proceedings

• Right to be heard if have legally recognized
  parent-child relationship
• Disposition
• Parental visitation
• Out-of-home placement plan
• Right to appointment of counsel
• Does not confer party status

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Court Responsibilities

• Inquire at 1st hearing if identity whereabouts
  both parents known
• Make inquiry of those present
• Inquire at subsequent hearings
• Have known parent sworn to provide info on
  identify or whereabouts of other
• Make findings on whether
• Agency made diligent efforts
• Both parents located
• Both parents served

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Court Responsiblities

• Identity and/or whereabouts unknown
• Find insufficient diligent efforts
• Order agency to take further steps
• Order specific efforts to be made
• Find sufficient diligent efforts
• Make reasonable efforts finding
• Decide whether further efforts for reunification
  would be futile
• Relieve agency of requirement to identify and/or
  locate upon finding of good cause

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Court Dispositions

• Protective supervision in home of noncustodial
  parent/father
• Does not confer legal custody
• Must have genetic test
• Must cooperate with paternity establishment
• May be conditions or case plan
• Must have permanency hearing

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Court Dispositions

• Establish father-child relationship under CH 257
• Establish permanent custody with noncustodial
  parent/father
• Agency may petition for paternity establishment
  custody in same permanency proceeding

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Paternity Proceedings

• Fathers rights
• Court-appointed counsel
• Genetic tests
• Jury trial
• Order requirements
• Name of legal father
• Name to be added to birth certificate
• Custody parenting time
• Name of child
• Social security numbers
• Important Notice requirements

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Dismissal on Father w/o TPR

• Presumption by marriage may be renounced by
  joinder to ROP
• ROP may be vacated
• Presumption of paternity may be rebutted in
  action to declare nonexistence of the
  father-child relationship
• Or court adjudication of another as father
• Or marriage dissolution judgment

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Nancy K. JonesHennepin County Attorneys
Officenancy.jones_at_hennepin.us612-348-8371Kevin
McTigueHennepin County Human Services Public
Health Departmentkevin.mctigue_at_hennepin.us612-34
8-7120
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