In re Arron Brandend C.
Opinion of the Court
—Orders of disposition, Family Court, New York County (Mary Bednar, J.), entered on or about April 30, 1997, terminating respondent’s parental rights to the subject children and committing their custody and guardianship to petitioner Commissioner of Social Services for the purpose of adoption, following a fact-finding determination of permanent neglect, unanimously affirmed, without costs.
While Family Court did find that respondent visited the children only “sporadically”, it did not, as respondent argues, terminate her parental rights upon a finding of abandonment, but rather upon a finding of permanent neglect by reason of failure to plan for the children’s future despite petitioner’s diligent efforts. A finding of permanent neglect may be based on either a failure to maintain contact or a failure to plan for a continuous period of one year at any time after the child’s placement (Matter of Star Leslie W., 63 NY2d 136, 142-143, 146), evidence of contact or planning after the filing of the petition being inadmissible for purposes of fact finding (cf, Family Ct Act § 624; Matter of Sheila G., 61 NY2d 368, 384; see, Matter of Christopher II., 222 AD2d 900, 902, lv denied 87 NY2d 812). Accordingly, the finding of neglect was properly based on evidence showing a failure to plan for five out of the six years preceding the filing of the petition, including repeated drug
Case-law data current through December 31, 2025. Source: CourtListener bulk data.