Is there any way to reverse an original termination of parental rights?
Full Question:
My husband has two children by his ex-wife. They are now 14 & 16. Over 10 years ago during a bitter divorce a custody battle in the state of CT was begun by him but dropped because the lawyer told him he had no chance of getting custody or visitation. This was because at the time he had been arrested due to UNTRUE claims of domestic abuse by the mother. He has since gotten a pardon for those false arrests. He has always wanted to see his children & have a relationship with them but he was young and was convinced at the time to give up his parental rights. Is there any way to reverse the original termination of parental rights?
11/07/2007 |
Category: Paternity ยป Termination ... |
State: Massachusetts |
#11818
Answer:
The following is a Connecticut statute:
Sec. 45a-719. Reopening judgment terminating parental rights. Best interest
of child. Final decree of adoption.
The court may grant a motion to open or set aside a judgment terminating
parental rights pursuant to section 52-212 or 52-212a or pursuant to common
law or may grant a petition for a new trial on the issue of the termination
of parental rights, provided the court shall consider the best interest of
the child, except that no such motion or petition may be granted if a final
decree of adoption has been issued prior to the filing of any such motion
or petition. Any person who has legal custody of the child or who has
physical custody of the child pursuant to an agreement, including an
agreement with the Department of Children and Families or a licensed
child-placing agency, may provide evidence to the court concerning the best
interest of the child at any hearing held on the motion to reopen or set
aside a judgment terminating parental rights. For the purpose of this
section, "best interest of the child" shall include, but not be limited to,
a consideration of the age of the child, the nature of the relationship of
the child with the caretaker of the child, the length of time the child has
been in the custody of the caretaker, the nature of the relationship of the
child with the birth parent, the length of time the child has been in the
custody of the birth parent, any relationship that may exist between the
child and siblings or other children in the caretaker's household, and the
psychological and medical needs of the child. The determination of the best
interest of the child shall not be based on a consideration of the
socio-economic status of the birth parent or the caretaker.
