In re Guardianship of S.O.

Summary

The Vermont Supreme Court affirmed dismissal of grandparents’ petition for a minor custodial guardianship after the child’s parents’ residual parental rights had been terminated and transferred to the Department for Children and Families without limitation as to adoption. The Court held that neither a consensual nor a nonconsensual guardianship was available under 14 V.S.A. §§ 2626 and 2627 under these circumstances. It also held that dismissal without an evidentiary hearing did not violate due process because the relevant facts were undisputed and the grandparents had an opportunity to respond to the motion to dismiss.

Holdings

1. The grandparents were not entitled to a consensual custodial guardianship because the statutory requirements for parental consent and a written agreement concerning the guardianship could not be satisfied after the parents' residual parental rights had been terminated and transferred to DCF.
2. A nonconsensual custodial guardianship was unavailable because, by definition, it requires a parent who opposes the guardianship or seeks to terminate a previously agreed guardianship, and the parents here no longer possessed parental rights or the ability to consent to or oppose a guardianship.
3. Due process did not require an evidentiary hearing because the material facts were undisputed, the grandparents received notice and an opportunity to respond to DCF's motion, and no evidence could establish relief that the probate division was legally authorized to grant.

Questions Presented

1. Whether the grandparents could obtain a consensual or nonconsensual minor custodial guardianship after the parents' residual parental rights had been terminated and transferred to DCF without limitation as to adoption.
2. Whether due process required the probate division to hold an evidentiary hearing on the merits before dismissing the guardianship petition.

Disposition

affirmed