Appeal question

I'm not aware of any extension of the 60 day appeal period, however, the 60 day clock doesn't always start the day of or after the .26 (TPR) hearing. A couple of things can happen: 1) The judge may not issue their written opinion immediately after the hearing. He/she may wait a week or two or three before issuing the written opinion. My understanding is that the clock doesn't start until the written opinion is issued. 2) In California, due to court backlogs and short staffing, often referees serve as temporary judges in dependency cases. All parties usually agree or stipulate to using a referee, however, their orders technically have to be reviewed by a judge (rubber stamped). Sometimes there's a delay in reviewing the orders. Depending on the situation, there may be additional notification requirements for the parents right to appeal if a referee issues the ruling vs. a judge. Bottom line, I'm not aware of any reason to extend the appeal period, however, the appeal period may not begin when you think it begins.

I was at the tpr hearing. It was definitely the judge that heard it. Also it's just a few days short of 90 days now. So I'm in the clear?

I see you're in CA, so that's good. You should be in the clear but you should contact your adoption worker to double check as sometimes news travels slowly especially with all of the court staffing cutbacks in California. It also doesn't hurt to contact your foster child's attorney to see if they've received notice of an appeal. Re the referee/judge issue, I found the following guidance from LA County DCFS: "If the TPR order was made by a Referee or Commissioner, a birth parent has 70 days from the date the Findings and Orders was mailed to file an appeal."

My sister is telling people that she will have her child back in August. She was terminated in February. She says I coerced and manipulated her into not filing an appeal. She would've lost anyhow. She was released from jail on Thursday and terminated on Monday. She's been on drugs for 15 years and in jail numerous times (at least 5 times during her two years of services offered). We have a squeaky clean record with an honor student for a bio child. She's done nothing that the judge asked. Should I be worried? And will this cost me to hire an attorney?? Thanks.

It doesn't sound like you have much to worry about, especially if the appeals period has ended and she didn't file one. If she didn't file an appeal during the appeals period, she'd have to hire an attorney to file a motion to reopen the appeals period which is a HUGE long shot. Then she'd actually have to win an appeal, another long shot. I would just double check to make sure that she didn't file an appeal within the 60 days, and, assuming she didn't, move on. I'm not a lawyer or an expert but I believe you can breathe a sigh of relief now.

It sounds pretty rock solid at this point. Since you are so far past the appeal period you should call you adoption worker and ask when you can finalize. Also, ask if you can hire a private attorney to speed along the finalization. It's about $400 to do this and usually you can get it refunded.