Minnesota Statutes 260C.202 – Court Review of Foster Care
(a) If the court orders a child placed in foster care, the court shall review the out-of-home placement plan and the child’s placement at least every 90 days as required in juvenile court rules to determine whether continued out-of-home placement is necessary and appropriate or whether the child should be returned home. This review is not required if the court has returned the child home, ordered the child permanently placed away from the parent under sections 260C.503 to 260C.521, or terminated rights under section 260C.301. Court review for a child permanently placed away from a parent, including where the child is under guardianship of the commissioner, shall be governed by section 260C.607. When a child is placed in a qualified residential treatment program setting as defined in section 260C.007, subdivision 26d, the responsible social services agency must submit evidence to the court as specified in section 260C.712.
(b) No later than three months after the child’s placement in foster care, the court shall review agency efforts to search for and notify relatives pursuant to section 260C.221, and order that the agency’s efforts begin immediately, or continue, if the agency has failed to perform, or has not adequately performed, the duties under that section. The court must order the agency to continue to appropriately engage relatives who responded to the notice under section 260C.221 in placement and case planning decisions and to consider relatives for foster care placement consistent with section 260C.221. Notwithstanding a court’s finding that the agency has made reasonable efforts to search for and notify relatives under section 260C.221, the court may order the agency to continue making reasonable efforts to search for, notify, engage, and consider relatives who came to the agency’s attention after sending the initial notice under section 260C.221.
Terms Used In Minnesota Statutes 260C.202
- Agency: means the responsible social services agency or a licensed child-placing agency. See Minnesota Statutes 260C.007
- Child: means an individual under 18 years of age. See Minnesota Statutes 260C.007
- Court: means juvenile court unless otherwise specified in this section. See Minnesota Statutes 260C.007
- 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.
- Foster care: means 24-hour substitute care for a child for whom a responsible social services agency has placement and care responsibility and:
(1) who is placed away from the child's parent or guardian in foster family homes, foster homes of relatives, group homes, emergency shelters, residential facilities not excluded in this subdivision, child care institutions, and preadoptive homes;
(2) who is colocated with the child's parent or guardian in a licensed residential family-based substance use disorder treatment program as defined in subdivision 22a; or
(3) who is returned to the care of the child's parent or guardian from whom the child was removed under a trial home visit pursuant to section 260C. See Minnesota Statutes 260C.007
- Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
- Parent: means a person who has a legal parent and child relationship with a child which confers or imposes on the person legal rights, privileges, duties, and obligations consistent with sections 257. See Minnesota Statutes 260C.007
- Qualified residential treatment program: means a children's residential treatment program licensed under chapter 245A or licensed or approved by a tribe that is approved to receive foster care maintenance payments under section 256. See Minnesota Statutes 260C.007
- Responsible social services agency: means the county social services agency that has responsibility for public child welfare and child protection services and includes the provision of adoption services as an agent of the commissioner of human services. See Minnesota Statutes 260C.007
(c) The court shall review the out-of-home placement plan and may modify the plan as provided under section 260C.201, subdivisions 6 and 7.
(d) When the court transfers the custody of a child to a responsible social services agency resulting in foster care or protective supervision with a noncustodial parent under subdivision 1, the court shall notify the parents of the provisions of sections 260C.204 and 260C.503 to 260C.521, as required under juvenile court rules.
(e) When a child remains in or returns to foster care pursuant to section 260C.451 and the court has jurisdiction pursuant to section 260C.193, subdivision 6, paragraph (c), the court shall at least annually conduct the review required under section 260C.203.