Minnesota Guide to Termination of Parental Rights
A PRIMER ON TERMINATION OF PARENTAL RIGHTS IN MINNESOTA
What Does Termination of Parental Rights Mean?
Termination of Parental Rights (TPR) is exactly how it sounds—parental rights are terminated or taken away. This means that the person whose rights have been terminated is not legally the child’s parent anymore. Once someone’s parental rights have been terminated, they lose the right to visit or contact their child, they are unable to control the child’s upbringing, and the child may be adopted without the parent’s permission. Due to the number of rights parents have—many of which are constitutional in nature—parental rights are typically only terminated for grave and weighty reasons.
Voluntary vs. Involuntary Termination
In Minnesota, parental rights may be terminated either voluntarily or involuntarily. A voluntary termination occurs when a parent agrees to terminate their own rights. Parents may agree to voluntarily terminate their rights if it is in the best interests of the child and there is good cause to do so. Common scenarios in which good cause is present is when your ex-partner is married to someone who wants to adopt the child or when your child has been in foster care for a long time. Court do not let parents give up their parental rights just because they do not want to pay child support.
An involuntary termination of parental rights is when a parent does not agree to their rights being terminated but the court orders the parental rights terminated anyways. If your parental rights are terminated involuntarily, not only do you lose the rights to the children you currently have, but, if you have any future children, your rights may be terminated to them as well.
How are Parental Rights Terminated in Minnesota?
Termination of parental rights is a very serious consequence. However, in order to get to that point, the circumstances surrounding you and your family must ordinarily be severe. There are a number of steps that usually occur prior to parental rights being terminated. Specifically, once the County receives an initial report of child maltreatment, they will investigate or look into that report. If their investigation leads them to believe that maltreatment occurred, many times the County will decide to file a Child in Need of Protection or Services (CHIPS) Petition.
Once a CHIPS Petition has been filed, the County, who is usually the petitioning party, will request that the Court adjudicate your children as being in need of protection or services. If the Court does adjudicate your children as being in need of protection or services, the Court will order you to comply with a case plan. It is extremely important to follow the case plan, as the case plan is essentially giving parents a chance to remedy any issues that the court determines need to be fixed prior to your children returning home. Courts typically provide the parents with anywhere from 6 to 12 months to remedy any issues.
If a parent does not follow the court ordered case plan, the County may decide to file a petition to terminate your parental rights. If this happens, your options are limited. You can either admit the allegations in the TPR Petition—or deny them. If you admit the allegations, your parental rights will be terminated voluntarily. If you deny the allegations in the petition, you will proceed to trial.
At Trial, it is the County’s burden to prove that your parental rights should be terminated by clear and convincing evidence (or beyond a reasonable doubt if your child is an Indian child). The County must also prove in most cases that they made reasonable efforts (or active efforts if your child is an Indian child) to reunify the family. After all parties present their evidence, the Judge will decide if your parental rights should be terminated. If the Judge agrees with the County, your parental rights will be terminated involuntarily. If the Judge agrees with the parent, the case will likely be dismissed, or the Judge will give you more time to work on your case plan.
What Reasons Can Parental Rights be Terminated for in Minnesota?
There are a number of reasons in which parental rights can be terminated. The most common reasons are as follows:
1. Abandonment. If you do not have regular contact with your child or show any interest in them for at least 6 months without a good reason your parental rights could be terminated.
2. Neglect. If you are able to provide for your children’s food, clothing, shelter, education, and other care, but choose not to, your parental rights may be terminated.
3. Failure to Support. If you are ordered to pay child support, fail to pay consistently, and you have the means and resources to support your child, your parental rights could be terminated.
4. Palpably Unfit. If you are unable for the reasonably foreseeable future to care appropriately for your child’s physical, emotional, and mental health, your parental rights may be terminated.
5. Failure to Correct Conditions. If your children have been in foster care for 12 out of the last 22 months (or for 6 months if they are under 8) your parental rights could be terminated if you fail to follow the court ordered case plan and social services has tried to help reunited your family but has failed at doing so.
6. Egregious Harm. If your children were hurt badly in your care, your parental rights may be terminated and, in many instances, a CHIPS petition will not be filed to give you a chance to work a case plan.
7. Absent birth father. Your rights may be terminated if you were not married to the child’s mother at time of birth, you are not listed on the birth certificate, you are not involved in the child’s life, you are not supporting the child, and you have not registered with the father’s adoption registry.
8. Neglected and in Foster Care. If your children are in foster care and are unable to go home, or if you fail to visit or support your children while they are in foster care, your parental rights may be terminated.
9. Serious Criminal Conviction. If you have been convicted of killing a child or serious assault or sexual abuse against your children, your parental rights could be terminated.
Is Being Incarcerated a reason to Terminate Parental Rights in Minnesota?
While being incarcerated is not a legal reason by itself to terminate someone’s parental rights it—along with other things—can show the Court that you are an unfit parent or not involved in your children’s lives. Even if you are incarcerated, it is important to remain in contact with your children to avoid having your rights terminated. If, however, you are incarcerated for being convicted of some serious crimes, you may have to prove that it is in your children’s best interest to visit you.
How can I avoid my Parental Rights being Terminated?
If you are a party to a CHIPS case and your children have been removed from your home, the best thing you can do is follow your case plan. If a petition to terminate your parental rights has been followed, it is still important to follow your case plan to show the court all the steps your are taking to fix the problems. If there is a decent chance that the court will terminate your parental rights, you can request that custody be transferred to a friend or relative instead. This allows you to retain your parental rights while making sure your children have a permanent place to live. You also may be allowed to regularly visit your children under this arrangement. Importantly, unlike a termination of parental rights and subsequent adoption, there is a chance that a transfer of custody order may be modified.
Do I need a Lawyer?
You absolutely need a lawyer if you are involved in a termination of parental rights proceeding. The private parent defense attorneys at RAM Law PLLC have experience defending parents against allegations of palpable unfitness, abandonment, and other legal reasons for terminating parental rights. If the County has filed a TPR Petition against you, call the cps defense attorneys at RAM Law PLLC to protect your rights.