In re R.J.F., 443 P.3d 387

Background

Child removed at birth (Oct 8, 2016) after mother tested positive for methamphetamine and marijuana; mother lived in Williston, North Dakota ~300 miles from Billings placement.
Department placed child in non-kinship foster care in Billings; initial visits were "whenever she was in town" and occasional flights were later provided; no thorough effort to obtain kinship placement or local (ND) services.
Mother had transportation and licensing barriers, completed CD evaluations recommending outpatient treatment, and struggled with addiction; she later moved to Billings (sold home) and then to California while engaging in treatment.
Department delayed service of petition and hearings, took months to approve a treatment plan, and filed for termination ~11 months after removal; CPS workers varied in approach and assistance.
Mother made measurable progress after relocating (treatment, sober housing, AA/NA, employment, parenting coursework), but Department proceeded with termination; court admitted written evaluations over hearsay objections based on In re M.C.
Supreme Court reversed termination, holding Department failed to provide required reasonable reunification efforts and that the court erred in finding mother’s condition unlikely to change within a reasonable time.

Issues

Issue	Mother’s Argument	Department’s Argument	Held
Whether Department made reasonable efforts to prevent removal and to reunify	Department failed to: place child near mother; obtain courtesy CPS or services in ND/CA; develop realistic treatment/visitation plan	Department made reasonable efforts (flights, treatment plan) and complied with policy	Reversed: Dept. failed to provide reasonable efforts (placement, kinship search, local services, realistic visitation/treatment)
Whether condition making mother unfit was unlikely to change in a reasonable time	Mother had substantial, demonstrable progress in sobriety and stability by hearing; relapse is expected in addiction and not dispositive	Mother’s short period in treatment did not show long-term change; best-interest presumption (§41-3-604) supports termination	Reversed: given lack of reasonable efforts and mother’s progress, court erred in finding condition unlikely to change
Admissibility/use of written evaluator/provider reports under In re M.C.	Mother argued documents admitted without live testimony violated right to confront/cross-examine; In re M.C. not so broad	Department relied on In re M.C. to admit written reports as proof of noncompliance	Clarified: In re M.C. does not permit wholesale admission of all provider reports over hearsay/foundation objections; admission limited to narrow circumstances where parent agreed to and failed to contest evaluator recommendations
Whether the district court abused discretion in procedural scheduling/transfers	Mother sought transfer/coordination with ND, argued delays and venue denial impeded reunification	Dept. argued venue proper in MT and policy did not require out-of-state courtesy CPS	Court criticized delays and denied reasonable transfer/inquiry; remanded for Dept. to provide reasonable reunification efforts

Key Cases Cited

In re M.C., 403 P.3d 1266 (Mont. 2017) (admission of evaluator report limited to circumstances where parent agreed to evaluation recommendations and did not contest them)
In re D.B., 168 P.3d 691 (Mont. 2007) (reasonable efforts prerequisite to finding unfitness unlikely to change)
In re A.S., 373 P.3d 848 (Mont. 2016) (standard of review for termination of parental rights)
In re J.B., 368 P.3d 715 (Mont. 2016) (definition and review of factual findings in parental-termination context)
In re M.V.R., 384 P.3d 1058 (Mont. 2016) (review standards for termination and evidentiary rulings)