Trial Court Did Not Have Jurisdiction: Termination of Parental Rights Vacated
A trial court erred by exercising jurisdiction over a juvenile, therefore, the order terminating the respondent-father’s parental rights to the child had to be vacated.
Grandma Named Children’s Legal Guardian: Father’s Visitation Request Must Be Considered
In In re Ballard, the trial court had placed the 3 children in the custody of their maternal grandmother, before doing so, the trial court did not terminate the biological father’s parental rights.
The Court of Appeals Holds That a Putative Father May Be Unfit or Unable to Properly Care for His Child Due to Incarceration
A parent’s rights may not be terminated solely on the basis of parental incarceration in a Juvenile Code case - also applied to an Adoption Code case.
Juvenile's Truancy Not Willful but Product of Bullying
On April 15, 2014, in a published decision, the Michigan Court of Appeals held that absences attributable to fear of bullying were not “willful” absences under MCL 712A.2(a)(4).