In re Diane R.

Summary

The New Hampshire Supreme Court held that RSA 169-C:28 does not provide a right to de novo review of post-final dispositional orders in child-abuse and neglect proceedings. The court explained that such orders may instead be challenged through a petition for writ of certiorari, but concluded that any such challenge in this case would have been untimely. The court affirmed dismissal of the parents’ appeal.

Holdings

1. RSA 169-C:28 does not provide a statutory right to de novo review in superior court of post-final-dispositional review orders issued by the district court.
2. The June 15, 1999 order did not constitute a new final dispositional order because the material change from reunification to long-term foster care occurred no later than the 1997 order.
3. Even if the appeal were treated as a petition for writ of certiorari challenging the 1997 order, it would be untimely.

Questions Presented

1. Whether RSA 169-C:28 authorizes a de novo appeal to superior court from a post-final-dispositional review order issued by the district court.
2. Whether the June 15, 1999 order substantially changed the case plan so as to constitute a new final dispositional order subject to de novo review.
3. Whether denial of de novo review violated the plaintiffs' state or federal constitutional due-process rights.

Disposition

affirmed