- (A) A petition seeking termination of parental rights may be filed by the Department of Social Services or any interested party.
- (B) The department may file an action for termination of parental rights without first seeking the court's approval of a change in the permanency plan pursuant to Section 63-7-1680 and without first seeking an amendment of the placement plan pursuant to Section 63-7-1700. Additionally, the department may amend or supplement a petition for removal or a complaint for removal to include a cause of action for termination of parental rights any time after grounds for termination of parental rights are present.
- (C) The hearing on the petition to terminate parental rights must be held within one hundred twenty days of the date the termination of parental rights petition is filed. A party may request a continuance that would result in the hearing being held more than one hundred twenty days after the petition was filed, and the court may grant a continuance in its discretion. If a continuance is granted, the court must issue a written order scheduling the case for trial on a date and time certain.
HISTORY: 2008 Act No. 361, Section 2; 2009 Act No. 41, Section 3, eff July 1, 2009; 2023 Act No. 80 (H.3553), Section 3, eff June 19, 2023.
Effect of Amendment
The 2009 amendment added subsection (C) relating to the time for hearing a petition to terminate parental rights.
2023 Act No. 80, Section 3, in (B), added the second sentence.