T.J.T. v. Dep't of Children & Families & Guardian Ad Litem Program
T.J.T. v. Dep't of Children & Families & Guardian Ad Litem Program
Opinion of the Court
Appellant E.U. (the Mother) appeals the trial court order terminating her parental rights to T.J.T. We reverse the final termination judgment, including the entry of the consent by nonappearance, because the Mother was denied the effective assistance of counsel. The record reflects that the general magistrate declined to rule on the Mother's request for counsel at a judicial review and that the Department of Children and Families misrepresented the nature of the Mother's request for counsel at a subsequent status conference. This unnecessary delay in the appointment of counsel resulted in the trial court entering the Mother's consent by nonappearance while the request for counsel remained pending.
Reversed and remanded.
CASANUEVA, SLEET, and LUCAS, JJ., Concur.
While we recognize that trial courts are required by statute to enter a consent when a parent fails to appear for an advisory hearing, see § 39.801(3)(d), Fla. Stat. (2017), we note that the best practice would be to resolve a pending request for counsel prior to entering a consent by nonappearance.
Case-law data current through December 31, 2025. Source: CourtListener bulk data.