Recently, a state appellate court issued a written opinion in a Rhode Island family law case discussing whether a letter that was written by a child to her father as part of a therapeutic exercise could be admitted into evidence in a hearing determining whether the father’s parental rights should…
If you are considering adoption, one of the things that needs to happen is for the parental rights of the biological parent or parents to be terminated. In a step-parent adoption case, only one parent needs to give up their parental rights. However, sometimes the other biological parent does not…
After removing three children from the home of their mother, the Rhode Island Department of Children, Youth and Families (DCYF) petitioned to terminate the parental rights of the mother. The Rhode Island Family Court approved the petition, and the mother appealed to the Rhode Island Supreme Court. The Supreme Court…
The opioid epidemic is a problem all over the country. Here in Rhode Island, some grandparents are seeking custody of their grandchildren after the parents have become addicted to drugs. However, navigating the Department of Children, Youth, and Families (DCYF) as a grandparent can be difficult, and some grandparents have…
In 1989, the Rhode Island Supreme Court decided an important case in Rhode Island family law, particularly within the realm of admissible evidence. Petitioners appealed a family court decree granting a petition to terminate parental rights filed by the Department of Children and Their Families (DCF). The petitioners had three…
In the early 2000’s, a Rhode Island woman appealed from a family court order terminating her parental rights to six of her seven children. The case came before the Rhode Island Supreme Court on October 1, 2002. The state high court affirmed the family court decree, reasoning that the respondent…
In March 2012, the Department of Children, Youth, and Families (DCYF) was apprised of an alleged incident of domestic violence that occurred in Massachusetts between a minor and his father. This ultimately led to the termination of his parental rights under Rhode Island family law. Originally, DCYF was informed that…
Rhode Island family law allows for the termination of an individual’s parental rights under certain circumstances. In a recent case, a father (the respondent) appealed the Rhode Island Family Court’s decision to terminate his parental rights. On November 19, 2013, the petitioners filed two adoption petitions in Family Court so that…
Rhode Island family law is a complex subject, one that often requires a knowledgeable attorney to parse its various nuances. In some instances, Family Court decisions that do not reach an outcome favorable to one party can be appealed. Such were the circumstances surrounding one fairly recent Rhode Island case.…