Courts may limit birth-family contact in adoption and parental-rights cases

When ending parental rights, the court may consider and issue an order stopping contact or allowing contact only with an approved supervisor. The order may cover contact between the child and a birth parent or relative. Contact includes visits, calls, messages, and communication through other people. The court may act on its own or on a party’s motion, but the person whose parental rights are being terminated cannot make that motion. The court may issue an order when needed to protect the child; if it finds an order is not needed, it must state the facts supporting that decision in writing. An order lasts until the child turns 18 unless the court changes or ends it sooner.

When finalizing an adoption, the court may consider and issue an order stopping contact or allowing contact only with an approved supervisor. The order may cover contact between the child and a birth parent or relative. Contact includes visits, calls, messages, and communication through other people. The court may act on its own or on a party’s motion. The court may issue an order when needed to protect the child; if it finds an order is not needed, it must state the facts supporting that decision in writing. An order lasts until the child turns 18 unless the court changes or ends it sooner.

Parties with actual knowledge of specified reports or records must bring them to the court’s attention when a contact order is being considered. The duty applies to parties in a current case, and to certain parties in a former parental-rights or adoption case involving the child’s sibling. The duty applies in parental-rights termination and adoption cases, including cases involving a sibling. Covered information includes certain incident reports, arrest or conviction records, and documented abuse or neglect findings. For those findings, the person must be named in the state registry or the finding must be less than seven years old when the case is filed. The duty applies when a party moves for an order or the court asks for information while considering one.