Read Matter of Annette B. Retrieved May 22, 2010, from State Court Watch Web site.
Note that the New York Court of Appeals in Annette B. decided that it must not disturb the lower court's ruling that Joseph abandoned his daughter. In the final paragraph of the Court's opinion, Justice R.S. Smith Jr. wrote:
We thus conclude that there is legally sufficient evidence to support...[the] conclusion that Joseph abandoned Annette....We do not reach this conclusion lightly. Joseph had an important, constitutionally-protected right to a parental relationship with his daughter, and DSS gave his rights too little attention. But Annette's interests are important too. At the time of the hearing below, she was nine years old and living in foster care; her mother had surrendered parental rights to her. DSS is seeking to free Annette for adoption, opposed by a father Annette had never lived with and with him she had had no contact since she was four or five.
Considering the above, the court decision, your reading about family law to date (in particular, Chapter 20), as well as outside resources, in a 500-700 word essay, answer the following questions:
- Suppose that Annette's foster parents were not seeking to adopt her. Do you think the result of this case would have been different?
- Should the current situation of the child be considered when the legal standard for termination of parental rights is clear and convincing evidence of abandonment by the natural parent? Remember when answering this question that in Annette B., Joseph was not seeking custody of his child in this action. He was, at this time, only defending against a claim by the Department of Social Services that his parental rights should be terminated completely.