1. (a) Adjudication and disposition hearings.

   1. (1)

      1. (A) Following a probable cause hearing, an adjudication hearing shall be held to determine whether the allegations in a petition are substantiated by a preponderance of the evidence.
      2. (B) The dependency-neglect adjudication hearing shall be held within thirty (30) days after the probable cause hearing under Arkansas Code § 9-27-315.
      3. (C) On motion of the court and parties for good cause shown, it may be continued for no more than thirty (30) days following the first thirty (30) days (i.e., up to sixty (60) days after the probable cause hearing).
      4. (D) However, if necessary and relevant evidence cannot be obtained in a timely manner the dependency-neglect adjudication hearing may be continued for up to an additional thirty (30) days (i.e., up to ninety (90) days after the probable cause hearing) upon motion of the court or any party.

   2. (2)

      1. (A) In dependency-neglect cases, a written adjudication order shall be filed by the court within thirty (30) days of the date of the hearing or prior to the next hearing, whichever is sooner.
      2. (B) The Office of Chief Counsel is responsible for drafting and filing court orders.
      3. (C) The court can determine the case disposition at the adjudication or at a separate hearing.
      4. (D) A disposition determines what actions the agency will take in the case.

   3. (3)

      1. (A) A judicial determination as to whether reasonable efforts were made or were not required to prevent removal must be made no later than sixty (60) days from the date the child is removed from the home.
      2. (B) If a judicial determination concerning reasonable efforts to prevent removal is not made within the specified timeframe, the child will be ineligible for IV-E foster care maintenance payments for the duration of that stay in foster care.

2. (b) Six-month review hearings.

   1. (1)

      1. (A) The court will review out-of-home placement cases no less than every six (6) months, including children in out-of-home cases who are placed out-of-state.
      2. (B)

3. (i) The first six-month review shall be held no later than six (6) months from the date of the original out-of-home placement of the child.

   1. (ii) However, the court may require a review prior to the sixth-month review hearing.

      1. (C) In addition, at any time during the life of an out-of-home placement case, any party may request the court to review the case, and the party requesting the hearing shall provide reasonable notice to all parties.

   2. (2)

      1. (A) At each sixth-month hearing the court will review the case sufficiently to determine the future status of the child based on the child’s best interest.

      2. (B) The court shall determine and include in its orders the following:

         1. (i) Whether the case plan, services, and placement meet the needs and best interest of the child, with the child’s health, safety, and educational needs specifically addressed;
         2. (ii) Whether the Division of Children and Family Services has made reasonable efforts to provide family services;
         3. (iii) Whether the case plan is moving towards an appropriate permanency plan for the child, per Arkansas Code § 9-27-338; and
         4. (iv) Whether the visitation plan is appropriate for the child, the parent or parents or any siblings, if separated.

   3. (3)

      1. (A) The court may order any studies, evaluations, or postdisposition reports, if needed.
      2. (B) All such documents will be provided in writing to all parties and counsel at least two (2) days prior to the review hearing.
      3. (C) All parties will be given a fair opportunity to dispute any part of a study, evaluation, or postdisposition report.

   4. (4) In making its findings, the court shall consider the following:

      1. (A) The extent of compliance with the case plan, including but not limited to, a review of the division’s care for the health, safety, and education of the child while the child has been in an out-of-home placement;
      2. (B) The extent of progress made toward alleviating or mitigating the causes necessitating the out-of-home placement;
      3. (C) Whether the child should be returned to his or her parent or parents and whether the child’s health and safety can be protected by his or her parent or parents if returned home; and
      4. (D) An appropriate permanency plan pursuant to Arkansas Code § 9-27-338 for the child, including concurrent planning (e.g., adoption, legal guardianship, APPLA, as appropriate).

   5. (5)

      1. (A) Pertaining to Title IV-E eligibility requirements, the judicial review is conducted by court review, not an administrative review process.
      2. (B) During each six-month review, the court shall make determinations based upon the best interest of the child.

      3. (C) The best interest of the child shall be paramount at every stage of the judicial process.

         1. (c) Permanency planning hearing.

   6. (1)

      1. (A) Each child in an out-of-home placement, including children placed out-of-state, shall have a permanency planning hearing (PPH) no later than twelve (12) months of the date the child is considered to have entered foster care and not less frequently than every twelve (12) months thereafter during the continuation of foster care.

      2. (B) A child will be considered to have entered foster care on the earlier of:

         1. (i) The date of the first judicial finding that the child has been subjected to child abuse or neglect; or
         2. (ii) The date that is sixty (60) days after the date on which the child is removed from the home.

   7. (2)

      1. (A) In-state and out-of-state options, including interstate placement, if appropriate, will be considered when making reasonable efforts to place the child in a timely manner in accordance with the permanency plan.
      2. (B) Reasonable efforts will be made to complete the steps necessary to finalize the legal permanent placement of the child.
      3. (C) If the child is in an out-of-state placement at the time of the hearing, the court will determine whether the placement continues to be appropriate and is in the best interest of the child.
      4. (D) When the court determines that reasonable efforts to return the child home are not required, the court shall hold a permanency planning hearing within thirty (30) days of the determination to enter a new disposition in the case to determine the child’s future status.
      5. (E) A permanency planning hearing shall also be held after a child has been in an out-of-home placement for fifteen (15) of the previous twenty-two (22) months, excluding the time spent while the child is on a trial home placement and runaway status.
      6. (F) The permanency planning hearing will be conducted by the court, not by an administrative body.

   8. (3)

      1. (A) When it becomes necessary to transfer a case to another venue, the court will contact the judge in the other venue to confirm that the transfer will be accepted.
      2. (B) After confirmation has been received, the transferring judge will enter a transfer order with the time and date of the next hearing and the location of the court in the new venue.
      3. (C) The transferring judge will immediately transmit the order to the judge in the new venue.
      4. (D) A copy of the order will be provided to all parties and attorneys to the case.
      5. (E) The transferring court will copy and send all court records to the judge in the new venue.

   9. (4)

      1. (A) The division must obtain a judicial determination that reasonable efforts were made to finalize the permanency plan for the child no later than twelve (12) months of the date the child entered foster care.
      2. (B) If a child remains in an out-of-home placement after the initial permanency planning hearing, an annual permanency planning hearing shall be held to reassess the permanency goal selected for the child.
      3. (C) If a judicial determination regarding reasonable efforts to finalize a permanency plan is not made, the child will be ineligible under Title IV-E from the end of the twelfth month following the date the child is considered to have entered foster care or the end of the twelfth month following the month in which the most recent judicial determination of reasonable efforts to finalize a permanency plan was made, and remains ineligible until such a judicial determination is made.
   10. (5) Reasonable efforts to finalize an alternate permanency plan such as placing a child with a fit and willing relative or fictive kin for adoption or with a legal guardian, including identifying appropriate in-state and out-of-state placements, will be made concurrently with reasonable efforts to reunify the child and family.

   11. (6) The permanency planning hearing (PPH) shall determine the permanency goal for the child that includes, listed in order of preference, in accordance with the best interest, health, and safety of the child:

       1. (A) Placing custody of the child with a fit parent at the permanency planning hearing;
       2. (B) Returning the child to the guardian or custodian from whom the child was initially removed at the permanency planning hearing;

       3. (C) Authorizing a plan to place custody of the child with a parent, guardian, or custodian only if the court finds that:

          1. (i)
4. (a) (a) The parent, guardian, or custodian is complying with the established case plan and orders of the court, making significant progress toward achieving goals established in the case plan and diligently working toward reunification or placement in the home of the parent, guardian, or custodian.

5. (b) (b) Regardless of when the effort was made, the court shall consider all evidence of an effort made by the parent, guardian, or custodian to remedy the conditions that led to the removal of the child or children from the custody of the parent, guardian, or custodian and give the evidence the appropriate weight and consideration in relation to the safety, health, and well-being of the child or children.

   1. (c) (c) The burden is on the parent, guardian, or custodian to demonstrate genuine, sustainable investment in completing the requirements of the case plan and following court orders in order to authorize a plan to return or be placed in the home as the permanency goal;

      1. (ii) The parent, guardian, or custodian is making significant and measurable progress toward remedying the conditions that:
6. (a) (a) Caused the child’s removal from the home or the child’s continued removal from the home; or

7. (b) (b) Prohibits placement of the child in the home of a parent; and

   1. (iii) Placement of the child in the home of the parent, guardian, or custodian shall occur within a time frame that is consistent with the child’s developmental needs but no later than three (3) months from the date of the PPH;

      1. (D) Authorizing a plan to obtain a guardianship or adoption with a fit and willing relative;

      2. (E)

         1. (i) Authorizing a plan for adoption with the division filing a petition for termination of parental rights, unless:

8. (a) (a) The child is being cared for by a relative and the court finds that:

   1. (1) (1) Either:

      1. (A) (A) The relative has made a long-term commitment to the child and is willing to pursue guardianship or permanent custody of the child; or
      2. (B) (B) The child is being cared for by his or her minor parent who is in foster care and TPR is not in the best interest of the child; and
   2. (2) (2) That termination of parental rights is not in the best interest of the child;

9. (b) (b) The division has documented in the case plan a compelling reason why filing a petition to terminate parental rights is not in the child’s best interest and the court approves the compelling reason as documented in the case plan; or

   1. (c) (c) The division has not provided the family of the child with services, consistent with the time period in the case plan, the services the division deemed necessary for the safe return of the child to the child’s home if reunification services were required to be made to the family.

      1. (ii) Termination of parental rights.

10. (a)

    1. (1) (a)(1) At any time during the course of a case, the Department of Human Services, the attorney ad litem, or the court can request a hearing on whether or not reunification services should be terminated.
    2. (2) (2) The requesting party shall provide notice to the parties at least fourteen (14) calendar days before the hearing.
    3. (3) (3) The notice shall identify the grounds for recommending termination of reunification services in sufficient detail to put the family on notice.

11. (b)

    1. (1) (b)(1) The requesting party shall present the case.
    2. (2) (2) The court shall conduct and complete a hearing on a “no reunification services” request within fifty (50) days of the date of written notice to the defendants.

    3. (3) (3) However, upon good cause shown, the hearing may be continued for an additional twenty (20) days.

       1. (c)
    4. (1) (c)(1) The court shall determine whether reunification services shall be terminated and enter an order of that determination.
    5. (2) (2) If the court determines that reunification services shall be terminated, the court shall hold a permanency planning hearing within thirty (30) days after the determination.
    6. (3) (3) If the court determines the permanency goal to be TPR, the department shall file a petition to terminate parental rights within thirty (30) days from the date of the entry of the order establishing such goal.
    7. (4) (4) The court shall conduct and complete a TPR hearing within ninety (90) days from the date the termination of parental rights petition is filed, unless continued for good cause.
    8. (5) (5) After an order of termination of parental rights is filed, the court shall review the case at least every six (6) months until permanency is achieved for the child.

    9. (6)

       1. (A) (6)(A) A permanency hearing shall be held each year following the initial hearing until permanence is achieved.
       2. (B) (B) Refer to 9 CAR § 40-908.

    10. (7) (7) The court reviews continue, even if a case is on appeal.

        1. (d) (d) The court may terminate parental rights on one (1) parent and not the other parent if the court finds that it is in the best interest of the child.

           1. (iii) Post-TPR visits.
12. (a) (a) If it is in the child’s best interest, visits with siblings and with relatives may take place after TPR.

13. (b) (b) Visitation after TPR will continue until an adoption placement is made or the out-of-home placement case is closed.

    1. (c) (c) Continuation of visits with relatives does not include the parents for whom the agency has obtained TPR;

       1. (F) Legal guardianship.

          1. (i) If the court grants legal guardianship no further services or periodic reviews are required.
          2. (ii) If a legal guardianship supported by a subsidy is put in place, the division will conduct an annual review of the family’s and child’s circumstances and an annual report to the court will be filed;
       2. (G) Permanent custody with a fit and willing relative. If the court grants permanent custody no further services or periodic reviews are required; and

       3. (H) Independence (see definition in 9 CAR § 40-102, definitions), including an another planned permanent living arrangement (APPLA).

          1. (i)
14. (a) (a) In the case of a child who has attained sixteen (16) years of age, the permanency planning hearing will determine the services needed to assist the child to make the transition from foster care to successful adulthood.

15. (b) (b) Independence shall be selected only if the division has documented to the circuit court a compelling reason for determining that it would not be in the best interest of the child to follow one (1) of the permanency plans above.

    1. (ii) If the department concludes, after considering reunification, adoption, legal guardianship, or permanent placement with a fit and willing relative, that the most appropriate permanency plan for a child is placement in another planned permanent living arrangement, the department will document to the court the compelling reason for the alternate plan.

    2. (7) The department may seek the services of the Federal Parent Locator Service to search for absent parents at any point in order to facilitate a permanency plan.

       1. (d) Notification of hearings and reviews.

    3. (1)

       1. (A) The department shall provide the foster parent or parents of a child, and any preadoptive parent or relative providing care for the child with timely notice of, and the right to be heard in, permanency planning hearings and six-month periodic reviews held with respect to the child during the time the child is in the care of such foster parent, preadoptive parent, or relative caregiver.
       2. (B) Notice of, and the right to be heard, does not include the right to standing as a party to the case.

    4. (2)

       1. (A) In any permanency planning hearing, including any hearing regarding the transition of the child from foster care to transitional living, procedural safeguards shall be applied to ensure the court or administrative body conducting the hearing consults with age-appropriate children regarding the proposed permanency or transition plans.
       2. (B) The hearing shall also address procedural safeguards with respect to parental rights pertaining to the removal of the child from the home of his or her parents, to a change in the child’s placement, and to any determination affecting visitation privileges of parents.
    5. (3) Judicial determinations regarding “contrary to the welfare”, reasonable efforts to prevent removal, and reasonable efforts to finalize the permanency plan in effect, including judicial determinations that reasonable efforts are not required, must be explicitly documented and made on a case-by-case basis and so stated in the court order.

    6. (4) Reasonable efforts are not required to reunify the child and family if:

       1. (A) The court has determined that the parent has subjected the child to aggravated circumstances (see 9 CAR § 40-102, definitions);

       2. (B) The court has determined that the parent has committed:

          1. (i) Murder of any child;
          2. (ii) Manslaughter of any child;
          3. (iii) Aiding or abetting, attempting, conspiring, or soliciting to commit such a murder or such a manslaughter;
          4. (iv) A felony battery that results in serious bodily injury to any child;
          5. (v) Abandoned an infant as defined by Arkansas Code § 9-27-303; or
          6. (vi) Registered with a sex offender registry under the Adam Walsh Protection and Safety Act of 2006, Pub. L. No. 109-248; and
       3. (C) The parental rights of the parent with respect to a sibling have been terminated involuntarily.
    7. (5) If reasonable efforts and “contrary to the welfare” judicial determinations are not included as required in the court orders, a transcript of the court proceedings is the only other documentation acceptable to verify that the required determinations have been made.
    8. (6) Neither affidavits nor nunc pro tunc orders will be acceptable as verification documentation in support of reasonable efforts and “contrary to the welfare” judicial determinations.
    9. (7) Court orders that reference state law to substantiate judicial determinations are not acceptable, even if state law provides that removal must be based on a judicial determination that remaining in the home would be contrary to the child’s welfare or that removal can only be ordered after reasonable efforts have been made.

    10. (8)

        1. (A) At any hearing in which the department is ordered by the court to provide services for a family, the court shall provide the department with the opportunity to be heard.
        2. (B) When the department is not a party to the case, failure by the court to provide at least five (5) working days’ notice to the department renders any part of the order pertaining to the department void.
        3. (C) Refer to 9 CAR § 40-333 for information related to FINS cases.

Codification Notes: This section as promulgated prior to codification into the Code of Arkansas Rules provided as follows: "01/2020"