Termination of parental rights is a court order that permanently severs the legal parent-child relationship when the court finds one or both parents to be unfit, or when one or both parents give up their parental rights so that an adoption can take place.
IMPORTANT: Termination of parental rights IS NOT granted by the courts on request or by mutual agreement of the parents as a means of solving visitation or support disputes.
For information on stepparent adoption, see our Step-by-Step Guide: Stepparent Adoption.
You can find additional materials on family law by browsing the library shelves near the listed books or by searching the library catalog.
BASICS California courts may terminate parental rights in several ways:
- In Juvenile Dependency Court. The child becomes a ward of the court when someone (usually CPS) reports mistreatment. Termination is involuntary when the court finds that the parent(s) have abused, neglected, or abandoned a child, and/or that the parents suffer from some mental or physical incapacity, including substance abuse, that prevents them from caring for the child.
- In Family Court Adoption proceedings. Both birth parents may voluntarily terminate their parental rights when relinquishing the child for an agency or independent adoption.
- In Family Court Stepparent or Domestic Partner Adoption proceedings. Termination is with the consent of the non-custodial parent, or without their consent if the court finds that the parent has willfully abandoned the child.
- In Family Court Parentage actions. The father's parental rights can be terminated without his consent if the court finds that his continuing relationship is not in the child's best interest.
- In Family Court Emancipation proceedings. A minor at least 14 years old may petition the court to become an adult before the age of 18. This requires written permission from the parent(s) and a court finding that granting emancipation is not contrary to the minor's best interest. The granting of emancipation terminates parental rights, because the child is legally an adult.
PRINT AND ELECTRONIC RESEARCH MATERIALS
California Family Law: Practice and Procedure. KFC 115 .L87
Volume 5, Termination of Parental Rights, Chapter 171
This is an excellent source for sorting out the circumstances and the law behind voluntary and involuntary termination. For forms and pleadings, see the next reference.
Electronic Access: On the Law Library computers using the LexisNexis CD.
California Forms of Pleading and Practice. KFC 1010 .A65 C3
Analysis, references to the codes you will need to read, and sample forms and pleadings.
Volume 2, Adoptions—Termination of Parental Rights, Chapter 12A
Volume 20, Emancipation of Minors, Chapter 245
Volume 28, Juvenile Courts: Dependency Proceedings, Chapter 328
Electronic Access: On the Law Library computers using the LexisNexis CD.
Do Your Own California Adoption. KFC 132 .Z33
Attorneys wrote this "plain English" book for the layperson. It assumes there is a stepparent or domestic partner adoption in progress, but it has some good plain-English text about termination and willful abandonment. The book comes with a CD that includes forms required for this stepparent adoption process.
California Jurisprudence 3d. KFC 80 .C35
Volume 32, Family Law, Chapter VI, "Parent and Child Relationship."
Sections 329-390, "Termination," provide details of the types of termination, and references to the governing law and to court decisions on these matters.
Electronic Access: On the Law Library computers using Westlaw.
California Juvenile Dependency Practice. KFC 1196 .C35
This manual sorts out the complex and detailed processes of juvenile dependency court.
Electronic Access: On the Law Library computers using Onlaw.
CFLP: California Family Law Practice. KFC 115 .C35
Volume 2, Tab G, Section XVIII, Termination of Parental Rights explains termination law through a discussion of important court opinions on the subject.
FORMS
You will find the official, fill-in-the-blank forms that are available for your case at:
In addition to these forms, termination cases involve drafting original court pleadings. You will likely come to the Law Library to use some of the materials listed above, which will aid in the wording of the pleadings.
STATUTES
Many separate but interrelated sections of California Family, Penal and Welfare and Institutions Codes govern these complex issues. Here are just a few:
- Family Code §7600 – 7800 etc. for termination in adoption proceedings
- Penal Code §11164-11174.3 cover child abuse reporting.
- Welfare and Institutions Code §300 (a) – (j) give the reasons the court takes jurisdiction over a child; §361.5 (b) (h) (i) give some grounds for termination;and §366.26 (A) (B) list some discretionary exceptions the court can make.
California Codes are available in print at the Law Library, and for free on the internet:
Books:
- Deering's California Code Annotated (KFC30.5 .D4)
- Deering's includes model wording for forms after some code sections.
- West's Annotated California Codes (KFC30 .W48)
Websites:
WEBSITES
These websites will get you started, but they are no substitute for the official law or for the authoritative material in the Law Library. The Library's print and online sources will help to clarify the issues and explain the law and procedure in more detail.
updated 1/11 mpj