The Court of Appeals in the IN RE PETITION OF A.T.J. AND L.D.J., decided on March 18, 2021, further clarified the meaning of “grasping parental opportunity interest” in context of adoption petitions. At trial, the biological father’s rights were terminated during adoption litigation for the minor child with the father objecting to the proceeding. The biological father had primarily argued in the case that the trial court did not properly apply a parental presumption: that is, it terminated his parental rights without first making a finding of parental unfitness. Prior caselaw had established that the presumption in favor of a
Read More