Florida Statutes 39.827 – Hearing for appointment of a guardian advocate
Current as of: 2024 | Check for updates
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Terms Used In Florida Statutes 39.827
- Attorney ad litem: means an attorney appointed by the court to represent a child in a dependency case who has an attorney-client relationship with the child under the rules regulating The Florida Bar. See Florida Statutes 39.01
- Circuit: means any of the 20 judicial circuits as set forth in…. See Florida Statutes 39.01
- Continuance: Putting off of a hearing ot trial until a later time.
- Department: means the Department of Children and Families. See Florida Statutes 39.01
- Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
- Guardian: A person legally empowered and charged with the duty of taking care of and managing the property of another person who because of age, intellect, or health, is incapable of managing his (her) own affairs.
- Guardian: means a relative, nonrelative, next of kin, or fictive kin who is awarded physical custody of a child in a proceeding brought pursuant to this chapter. See Florida Statutes 39.01
- Guardian ad litem: means a person or an entity that is a fiduciary appointed by the court to represent a child in any civil, criminal, or administrative proceeding to which the child is a party, including, but not limited to, under this chapter, which uses a best interest standard for decisionmaking and advocacy. See Florida Statutes 39.01
- Guardian advocate: means a person appointed by the court to act on behalf of a drug-dependent newborn under part XI of this chapter. See Florida Statutes 39.01
- Judge: means the circuit judge exercising jurisdiction pursuant to this chapter. See Florida Statutes 39.01
- Necessary medical treatment: means care which is necessary within a reasonable degree of medical certainty to prevent the deterioration of a child's condition or to alleviate immediate pain of a child. See Florida Statutes 39.01
- Party: means the parent or parents of the child, the petitioner, the department, the guardian ad litem, and the child. See Florida Statutes 39.01
- Testimony: Evidence presented orally by witnesses during trials or before grand juries.
(1) When a petition for appointment of a guardian advocate has been filed with the circuit court, the hearing shall be held within 14 days unless all parties agree to a continuance. If a child is in need of necessary medical treatment as defined in s. 39.01, s. 984.03, or s. 985.03, the court shall hold a hearing within 24 hours.
(2) At the hearing, the parents have the right to be present, to present testimony, to call and cross-examine witnesses, to be represented by counsel at their own expense, and to object to the appointment of the guardian advocate.
(3) The hearing shall be conducted by the judge without a jury, applying the rules of evidence in use in civil cases. In a hearing on a petition for appointment of a guardian advocate, the moving party shall prove all the elements in s. 39.828 by a preponderance of the evidence.
(4) The hearing under this section must remain confidential and closed to the public. The clerk shall keep all court records required by this part separate from other records of the circuit court. All court records required by this part are confidential and exempt from s. 119.07(1). Records may only be inspected upon order of the court by persons deemed by the court to have a proper interest therein, except that a child and the parents or custodians of the child and their attorneys, the guardian ad litem, the department and its designees, and the attorney ad litem, if one is appointed, always have the right to inspect and copy any official record pertaining to the child. The court may permit authorized representatives of recognized organizations compiling statistics for proper purposes to inspect and make abstracts from official records, under whatever conditions upon their use and disposition the court may deem proper, and may punish by contempt proceedings any violation of those conditions. All information obtained pursuant to this part in the discharge of official duty by any judge, employee of the court, or authorized agent of the department is confidential and exempt from s. 119.07(1) and may not be disclosed to anyone other than the authorized personnel of the court or the department and its designees, except upon order of the court.