Working with Child Deprivation Cases in Georgia's Juvenile Courts

VIII. Permanency Planning - Judicial and Citizen Review

An order of disposition placing a deprived child in foster care under the supervision of the Department of Family and Children Services is effective for up to twelve months after the original placement unless it is terminated sooner by the court. O.C.G.A. § 15-11-41(j). Any other order of disposition will remain in force for two years unless sooner terminated by the court. O.C.G.A. § 15-11-41(m).

A. 30-DAY CASE PLANS

Within thirty (30) days of the date of the removal of the child and at each subsequent review of the dispositional order, DFCS must submit a written report which shall either include a case plan for the reunification of the family or the basis for its determination that a plan for reunification is not appropriate. The contents of the report shall be based upon a meeting to be held between DFCS, in consultation with the citizen review panel (if such a panel operates within your county), and the parents and children if available. O.C.G.A. § 15-11-41(c). The parents shall be given written notice of the meeting at least five days in advance and shall be advised that the report to be discussed at this meeting will be submitted to the judge to become an order of the court. O.C.G.A. § 15-11-41(c). The final report will become part of the formal case record and will be made available to the parents or guardian of the child upon request. The report must contain any dissenting recommendations of the citizen review panel and any recommendations made by the parents. O.C.G.A. § 15-11-41(c). The adjudicatory and dispositional hearings will often have already been held before the end of the thirty day time period. Be aware that courts in some jurisdictions require the 30-day case plan to be completed before the dispositional hearing is held.