L.G., MOTHER OF A.G., D.H., B.H., B.W., MINOR CHILDREN
v.
DEPARTMENT OF CHILDREN AND FAMILIES

Fla. 1st DCA | 2025-01-17
No. 1D2024-1484
2025 FL 476 Florida District Court of Appeal, First District (2025)

AI-generated. These summaries, headnotes, and key points are machine-generated and may contain errors or omissions. Always verify against the full opinion text below. Not legal advice.

Synopsis

The First District Court of Appeal dismissed L.G.'s appeal from a termination of parental rights decision after her counsel withdrew and she failed to timely file her own brief in support of the appeal. The court followed the established procedure approved in N.S.H. v. Department of Children and Family Services.


Holding

The appeal is dismissed. When counsel withdraws in an appeal involving termination of parental rights and the appellant fails to timely file her own brief in support of the appeal, dismissal of the appeal is the appropriate procedure.


Headnotes

[1] Dismissal of an appeal of termination of parental rights is an appropriate sanction when the appellant fails to timely file a brief after appointed counsel withdraws, pur…

Previewing 1 of 1 headnotes on this case. FLexlaw’s editorially structured points of law — every proposition, pinpointed — are reserved for members.

Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence

Key Quotes

“approving procedure that includes dismissal when, after counsel withdraws, the appellant fails to timely file his or her own brief in support of appeal of termination of parental rights”

The court's rationale for dismissal, citing the controlling precedent from N.S.H.

Facts & Procedural History

L.G. is the mother of four minor children: A.G., D.H., B.H., and B.W. A circuit court decision regarding termination of parental rights was appealed b…

The full statement of facts, procedural history, and disposition for this case are member content.

Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence

© FLexlaw, Inc. — AI-generated enrichments are proprietary. All rights reserved.


Opinion of the Court

January 17, 2025 PER CURIAM.

DISMISSED. N.S.H. v. Dep’t of Child. & Fam. Servs., 843 So. 2d 898 (Fla. 2003) (approving procedure that includes dismissal when, after counsel withdraws, the appellant fails to timely file his or her own brief in support of appeal of termination of parental rights). B.L. THOMAS, RAY, and KELSEY, JJ., concur. _____________________________ Not final until disposition of any timely and authorized motion under Fla. R. App. P. 9.330 or 9.331.

_____________________________ L.G., pro se, Appellant. Sarah J. Rumph, Children’s Legal Services, Tallahassee, for Appellee; Sara Elizabeth Goldfarb, Statewide Director of Appeals, and Mercy Almaguer, Senior Attorney, Statewide Guardian ad Litem, Tallahassee, for Statewide Guardian ad Litem.


Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus

Full citator, related cases, and AI research tools

Open in FLexlaw