Termination of parental rights is one of the most emotional and important legal proceedings in existence. The right to parent your child is one of the most fundamental constitutional rights that we enjoy, and a termination proceeding completely and permanently severs that right. I have represented parties filing to adopt children when the biological parents – after service of process – did not even bother to file an Answer or appear in court. As discussed here in a previous blog, I have also represented a father whose rights were at stake and who fought diligently to preserve them, and also to obtain custody of his child. Termination of Parental Rights proceedings are generally brought jointly with an adoption petition, as termination of all parents’ parental rights is required before an adoption. However, termination proceedings may take place prior to an adoption proceeding.
In Tennessee, in order to terminate parental rights the moving party must, prove by clear and convincing evidence, both: 1) grounds for termination, and 2) that termination of parental rights is in the child’s best interest. The grounds for termination of parental rights are located in Tennessee Code Annotated Section 36-1-113(g). The following are the grounds for termination listed in 36-1-113(g):
(1) Abandonment by the parent or guardian, as defined in § 36-1-102;
(2) Substantial noncompliance by the parent or guardian with the statement of responsibilities in a permanency plan pursuant to the provisions of title 37, chapter 2, part 4;
(3) The child has been removed from the home of the parent or guardian by order of a court for a period of six (6) months and:
(A) The conditions that led to the child’s removal or other conditions that in all reasonable probability would cause the child to be subjected to further abuse or neglect and that, therefore, prevent the child’s safe return to the care of the parent or parents or the guardian or guardians, still persist;
(B) There is little likelihood that these conditions will be remedied at an early date so that the child can be safely returned to the parent or parents or the guardian or guardians in the near future; and
(C) The continuation of the parent or guardian and child relationship greatly diminishes the child’s chances of early integration into a safe, stable and permanent home;
(4) The parent or guardian has been found to have committed severe child abuse as defined in § 37-1-102, under any prior order of a court or is found by the court hearing the petition to terminate parental rights or the petition for adoption to have committed severe child abuse against the child who is the subject of the petition or against any sibling or half-sibling of such child, or any other child residing temporarily or permanently in the home of such parent or guardian;
(5) The parent or guardian has been sentenced to more than two (2) years’ imprisonment for conduct against the child who is the subject of the petition, or for conduct against any sibling or half-sibling of the child or any other child residing temporarily or permanently in the home of such parent or guardian, that has been found under any prior order of a court or that is found by the court hearing the petition to be severe child abuse, as defined in § 37-1-102. Unless otherwise stated, for purposes of this subdivision (g)(5), “sentenced” shall not be construed to mean that the parent or guardian must have actually served more than two (2) years in confinement, but shall only be construed to mean that the court had imposed a sentence of two (2) or more years upon the parent or guardian;
(6) The parent has been confined in a correctional or detention facility of any type, by order of the court as a result of a criminal act, under a sentence of ten (10) or more years, and the child is under eight (8) years of age at the time the sentence is entered by the court;
(7) The parent has been convicted of or found civilly liable for the intentional and wrongful death of the child’s other parent or legal guardian.
Additionally, there is also grounds for termination focused on the mental incompetence of a parent and there are additional grounds for termination available if the parent is not the legal parent or guardian of the child as defined in T.C.A. § 36-1-117(b) or (c), which pertain to fathers of children born out of wedlock in specific circumstances.
As was stated previously, proving grounds for termination is the first hurdle a petitioner must jump through before proving that termination is in the child’s best interest, which will be discussed in a future blog post. It is important for anyone considering adoption that they understand the seriousness of the proceeding and be committed to a lengthy legal process prior to filing that first petition.
Ryan C. Smith's Tennessee Family Law Blog 