TERMINATING PARENTAL RIGHTS IN FLORIDA

Terminating parental rights in Florida lawyer
Tampa Lawyer Kevin A. Fuller

Terminating parental rights in Florida is possible, but you must meet specific criteria. The process begins by filing a Petition To Terminate Parental Rights. Florida Statute 39.806 establishes the grounds for termination of parental rights. The statute requires that a court finds by clear and convincing evidence one or more of the following grounds:

  1. When a parent or parents execute a voluntary written surrender of the child;
  2. Abandonment;
  3. When the parent or parents engage in behavior toward the child that threatens the life, safety, well-being, or physical, mental, or emotional health of the child regardless of services that have been provided;
  4. When the parent or parents is/are incarcerated for a time that will constitute a significant portion of the child’s minority, or the parent or parents have been determined to be a violent career criminal, or the court determines that a continued relationship with the incarcerated parent or parents would be detrimental to the child, and therefore termination of parental rights would be in the child’s best interests;
  5. When a child has been adjudicated dependent and the court has ordered a case plan, and (a) the child continues to be at risk, (b) the parent or parents have failed to substantially comply with the case plan, (c) the parent or parents have materially breached the case plan, or (d) the child has been in care for 12 of the last 22 months and the parent or parents have not substantially complied with the case plan so as to permit reunification.
  6. The parent or parents have engaged in egregious conduct that threatens the life or safety of the child;
  7. The parent or parents have subjected the child to aggravated child abuse;
  8. The parent or parents have committed the murder, manslaughter, aiding or abetting the murder, or conspiracy or solicitation to murder the other parent or another child, or a felony battery that resulted in serious bodily injury to the child;
  9. The parental rights of the parent to a sibling of the child have been terminated;
  10. The parent or parents have a history of extensive, abusive, and chronic use of alcohol or drugs which renders them incapable of caring for the child, and they have refused or failed to complete a treatment program during the 3 year period immediately preceding the filing of a petition;
  11. A test administered at birth that indicated that the child was exposed to alcohol or drugs;
  12. On 3 or more occasions the child has been placed in out-of-home care;
  13. The court determines that the child was conceived as a result of a sexual battery;
  14. The parent is convicted of a crime that requires the parent to register as a sexual predator.

Terminating parental rights is a very serious matter, and is usually taken as a last resort to ensure the safety and best interests of the child.

If you have questions about terminating parental rights, please feel free to call or e-mail The Fuller Firm, LLC. Kevin A. Fuller will schedule a consultation to answer your questions and advise you on the best way to proceed.