Text: HF02135 Text: HF02137 Text: HF02100 - HF02199 Text: HF Index Bills and Amendments: General Index Bill History: General Index
PAG LIN
1 1 Section 1. NEW SECTION. 232.117A COMMUNICATION OR
1 2 CONTACT AGREEMENT.
1 3 1. Prior to the issuance of an order pursuant to section
1 4 232.117, subsection 3, the court may approve inclusion in the
1 5 order of an agreement regarding communication or contact after
1 6 the termination of parental rights among a biological parent,
1 7 the child, and a prospective adoptive parent if the child had
1 8 previously received child foster care.
1 9 2. Prior to approval of such an agreement, the court shall
1 10 appoint a guardian ad litem for the child, if the child is not
1 11 already represented by a guardian ad litem, and the guardian
1 12 ad litem shall represent the best interest of the child
1 13 relating to the proposed agreement.
1 14 3. The court may approve inclusion of such an agreement in
1 15 the order upon the motion of a biological parent or a
1 16 prospective adoptive parent if all of the following conditions
1 17 are met:
1 18 a. The terms of the agreement are agreed to, in writing,
1 19 by the biological parent and the prospective adoptive parent.
1 20 b. The court finds that, based upon the recommendations of
1 21 the guardian ad litem and the court's own review, approval of
1 22 the agreement is in the best interest of the child.
1 23 4. In determining whether the agreement is in the best
1 24 interest of the child, the guardian ad litem and the court
1 25 shall consider all of the following, as applicable:
1 26 a. Whether the child and the biological parent lived
1 27 together for a substantial period of time.
1 28 b. Whether the child exhibits attachment to or bonding
1 29 with the biological parent.
1 30 c. Whether the biological parent is unable to provide
1 31 adequate parenting due to certain circumstances including but
1 32 not limited to a terminal condition or mental illness. For
1 33 the purposes of this paragraph, "mental illness" means mental
1 34 illness as defined in section 229.1 and "terminal condition"
1 35 means an incurable and irreversible condition that, without
2 1 the administration of life-sustaining treatment, will, within
2 2 reasonable medical judgment, result in death within two years.
2 3 5. Subsequent to the issuance of an order pursuant to
2 4 section 232.117, subsection 3, failure to comply with an
2 5 agreement approved under this section shall not be grounds for
2 6 appeal of a termination of parental rights order or appeal of
2 7 an adoption decree.
2 8 6. An agreement may be enforced by a civil action for
2 9 specific performance or for damages. The prevailing party may
2 10 be awarded reasonable attorney fees and court costs.
2 11 7. An agreement included in an order issued pursuant to
2 12 section 232.117, subsection 3, shall not be modified unless
2 13 the court finds any of the following:
2 14 a. That modification is in the best interest of the child
2 15 and the modification is agreed to by the adoptive parent and
2 16 the biological parent.
2 17 b. Circumstances have arisen subsequent to the issuance of
2 18 the order which justify modification of the agreement.
2 19 EXPLANATION
2 20 This bill provides for the inclusion in a termination of
2 21 parental rights order under chapter 232 of an agreement which
2 22 provides for communication or contact between a biological
2 23 parent, a child, and a prospective adoptive parent if the
2 24 child had previously received child foster care. The
2 25 agreement must be approved by the juvenile court, and may only
2 26 be approved if the biological parent and the prospective
2 27 adoptive parent agree, in writing, to the agreement and if the
2 28 juvenile court finds that approval of the agreement is in the
2 29 best interest of the child. The bill provides criteria for
2 30 determining if the agreement is in the best interest of the
2 31 child, including if the child lived with the biological
2 32 parent, bonded with the biological parent, or if the
2 33 biological parent is unable to adequately parent the child due
2 34 to circumstances such as mental illness or a terminal
2 35 condition. "Mental illness" and "terminal condition" are
3 1 defined in the bill. The bill also provides for the
3 2 appointment of a guardian ad litem for the child to represent
3 3 the child's best interest relating to the agreement.
3 4 The bill provides that noncompliance with the agreement,
3 5 following the issuance of a termination of parental rights
3 6 order or the issuance of an adoption decree, is not grounds
3 7 for appeal of either of these orders. However, the bill does
3 8 provide for enforcement of the agreement through a civil
3 9 action for specific performance or for damages. The bill also
3 10 provides for modification of the agreement if modification is
3 11 in the best interest of the child and if the parties to the
3 12 agreement approve the modification or if changed circumstances
3 13 justify the modification.
3 14 LSB 3061HH 76
3 15 pf/cf/24.2
Text: HF02135 Text: HF02137 Text: HF02100 - HF02199 Text: HF Index Bills and Amendments: General Index Bill History: General Index
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