R.T., SR., FATHER OF K.T. A CHILD, APPELLANT,
v.
DEPARTMENT OF CHILDREN AND FAMILIES, APPELLEE

Fla. 5th DCA | 2010-02-08
No. 5D09-2130
LAWSON and JACOBUS, JJ., concur.
27 So. 3d 195 Florida District Court of Appeal, Fifth District (2010) Positive Treatment
Cited by 12 cases

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Synopsis

Father R.T. appeals a trial court order terminating DCF protective supervision and placing his daughter in permanent guardianship with her older half-brother. The Fifth District Court of Appeal reversed and remanded because the guardianship order failed to comply with Florida Statute § 39.6221, which requires written findings explaining why the parent is unfit and why reunification is not possible.


Holding

The guardianship order is legally insufficient and must be reversed and remanded because it fails to comply with the statutory mandate. The order must either refer to specific findings of fact set forth in the trial court's dependency order or contain separate findings of fact regarding the issue of reunification.


Headnotes

[1] A trial court order establishing permanent guardianship must contain written findings explaining why parents are unfit and reunification is not possible, either by refere…

[2] A general reference to the circumstances underlying a dependency adjudication is insufficient to satisfy the statutory requirement for specific factual findings regarding…

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Key Quotes

“In its written order establishing a permanent guardianship, the court shall: (a) List the circumstances or reasons why the child's parents are not fit to care for the child and why reunification is not possible by referring to specific findings of fact made in its order adjudicating the child dependent or by making separate findings of fact”

Establishes the statutory requirement under Florida Statute § 39.6221(2)(a) that must be satisfied in guardianship orders

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Facts & Procedural History

The trial court entered a final order terminating DCF's protective supervision over K.T., a child, and placing her in permanent guardianship with her …

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Opinion of the Court
PALMER, J.

PALMER, J.

R.T. (father) appeals the final order entered by the trial court which terminated the Department of Children and Families’ (DCF) protective supervision over his daughter and placed her in the permanent guardianship of her older half-brother. Although the record contains sufficient evidence to support the trial court’s ruling, we must reverse and remand for the entry of an order containing factual findings regarding the issue of reunification sufficient to comply with the statutory mandate set forth in section 39.6221 of the Florida Statutes.

Section 39.6221 of the Florida Statutes requires trial courts to set forth written findings to support any decision to order a child into a permanent guardianship arrangement. Among other things, the statute requires trial courts to explain why the parent is not fit to care for the child:

39.6221. Permanent guardianship of a dependent child
* * *
(2) In its written order establishing a permanent guardianship, the court shall:
(a) List the circumstances or reasons why the child’s parents are not fit to care for the child and why reunification is not possible by referring to specific findings of fact made in its order adjudicating the child dependent or by making separate findings of fact ...

§ 39.6221(2)(a), Fla. Stat. (2008). The father contends that reversal is required because the instant guardianship order fails to comply with this mandate. We agree.

In In re J.S., 18 So.3d 712 (Fla. 2d DCA 2009), the mother appealed an order placing her children into a permanent guardianship arrangement. In the order, the trial court made certain findings, including the finding that:

11. Reunification with the parents at this time would be contrary to the welfare and not in the best interest of the children. The parents are not fit to care for the children and reunification is not possible because of the circumstances from which the court previously based its finding that the children are dependent in the order of adjudication, and in addition: The parents have not worked their case plan. They have not resolved the issues of domestic violence, stable housing or financial stability.

Id. at 714. Before discussing the substantive issue raised on appeal, the Second District noted that, pursuant to section 39.6221 of the Florida Statutes, the trial court was required to support its conclusion that reunification with the mother was not possible by either referring to specific findings of fact made in its order adjudicating her children dependent or by making separate findings of fact. The Second District ruled that the trial court’s findings, as set forth in paragraph 11 of its order, failed to comply with this requirement because they “made only a general reference to the circumstances from which the court previously based its findings that the children are dependent.” Id. at 715.

Here, regarding the issue of reunification, the trial court’s guardianship order states:

Reunification with the father at this time would be contrary to the welfare and not in the best interests of the child. The father is not fit to care for the child and reunification is not possible because of the facts and circumstances upon which the Court previously based its finding *197that the child is dependent in the order of adjudication, and based on testimony heard by the Court during the Permanency Hearing.

This finding is legally insufficient. Similar to the situation presented in J.S., the instant guardianship order fails to comply with the statutory requirement for written findings because the order does not refer to specific findings of fact set forth in the trial court’s dependency order nor contain separate findings of fact regarding the issue of reunification.

REVERSED and REMANDED.

LAWSON and JACOBUS, JJ., concur.


Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus


Citator

Cited By

  • C.S. v. Dep't of Child. & Families, 41 So. 3d 368 (Fla. 1st DCA 2010)
    …des, and we agree, that the lower court’s written order did not comply with section 39.6221(2), which requires case-specific findings. See C.A. v. Dept, of Children & Families, 27 So. 3d 241 (Fla. 4th DCA 2010); R.T. v. Dep’t of Children & Families, 27 So. 3d 195 (Fla. 5th DCA 2010); In re: J.S., 18 So. 3d 712 (Fla. 2d DCA 2009); In re: R.B., 6 So. 3d 736 (Fla. 2d DCA 2009); A.M. v. Dep’t of Children & Families, 5 So. 3d 809 (Fla. 2d DCA 2009). The state also concedes, and we agree, that the record does not…
  • …712, 714 (Fla. 2d DCA 2009) (citing C.A. v. Dep’t of Children & Families, 988 So. 2d 1247, 1249 (Fla. 4th DCA 2008)); see also M.G. v. Dep’t of Children & Family Servs., 86 So. 3d 1149, 1150 (Fla. 3d DCA 2012); R.T. v. Dep’t of Children & Families, 27 So. 3d 195, 196 (Fla. 5th DCA 2010). Further, the reference to D.C.’s failure to complete a case plan would not be sufficient, by itself, to support a permanent guardianship placement. See J.S., 18 [*926] So. 3d at 714. On remand, the trial court should recons…
  • M.G. v. Dep't of Child. & Fam. Servs., 86 So. 3d 1149 (Fla. 3d DCA 2012)
    …the visitation shall be: The trial court added “at the custodians’ sole discretion.” The Department concedes the trial court’s order does not meet the statutory requirements of section 39.6221(2)(a). See R.T., Sr. v. Dep’t of Children & Families, 27 So. 3d 195, 196-97 (Fla. 5th DCA 2010) (finding similar language in the trial court’s order legally insufficient “because the order does not refer to specific findings of fact set forth in the trial court’s dependency order nor contain separate findings of fac…

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