Wash. Rev. Code § 13.34.010
Short title
This chapter shall be known as the "Juvenile Court Act in Cases Relating to Dependency of a Child and the Termination of a Parent and Child Relationship".
Revised Code of Washington Chapter 13.34 — Juvenile Court Act—Dependency and Termination of Parent-Child Relationship
Washington · statute · Wash. Rev. Code ch. 13.34 · 89 active provisions
Provisions
Wash. Rev. Code § 13.34.020
Legislative declaration of family unit as resource to be nurtured—Rights of child
The legislature declares that the family unit is a fundamental resource of American life which should be nurtured. Toward the continuance of this principle, the legislature declares that the family unit should remain intact unless a child's right to conditions of basic nurture, health, or safety is jeopardized. When th…
Wash. Rev. Code § 13.34.025
Child dependency cases—Coordination of services—Remedial services
(1) The department and agencies shall develop methods for coordination of services to parents and children in child dependency cases. To the maximum extent possible under current funding levels, the department and agencies must:(a) Coordinate and integrate services to children and families, using service plans and acti…
Wash. Rev. Code § 13.34.030
Definitions
The definitions in this section apply throughout this chapter unless the context clearly requires otherwise.(1) "Abandoned" means when the child's parent, guardian, or other custodian has expressed, either by statement or conduct, an intent to forego, for an extended period, parental rights or responsibilities despite…
Wash. Rev. Code § 13.34.035
Standard court forms—Rules—Administrative office of the courts to develop and establish—Failure to use or follow—Distribution
(1) The administrative office of the courts shall develop standard court forms and format rules for mandatory use by parties in dependency matters commenced under this chapter or chapter 26.44 RCW. Forms shall be developed not later than November 1, 2009, and the mandatory use requirement shall be effective January 1,…
Wash. Rev. Code § 13.34.040
Petition to court to deal with dependent child—Application of federal Indian child welfare act
(1) Any person may file with the clerk of the superior court a petition showing that there is within the county, or residing within the county, a dependent child and requesting that the superior court deal with such child as provided in this chapter. There shall be no fee for filing such petitions.(2) Except where the…
Wash. Rev. Code § 13.34.045
Educational liaison—Identification
(1) The department must identify an educational liaison for youth in grades six through twelve who are subject to a proceeding under this chapter and who meet one of the following requirements:(a) All parental rights have been terminated;(b) Parents are unavailable because of incarceration or other limitations;(c) The…
Wash. Rev. Code § 13.34.046
Educational liaison—Responsibilities—Background checks
(1) Unless otherwise directed by the court, the responsibilities of the educational liaison for a youth subject to a proceeding under this chapter include, but are not limited to, the following:(a) To attend educational meetings and dependency hearings;(b) To meet with local school personnel at regular intervals regard…
Wash. Rev. Code § 13.34.050
Court order to take child into custody, when—Hearing
(1) The court may enter an order directing a law enforcement officer, probation counselor, or child protective services official to take a child into custody if: (a) A petition is filed with the juvenile court with sufficient corroborating evidence to establish that the child is dependent; (b) an affidavit or declarati…
Wash. Rev. Code § 13.34.055
Custody by law enforcement officer—Release from liability
(1) A law enforcement officer shall take into custody a child taken in violation of RCW 9A.40.060 or 9A.40.070. The law enforcement officer shall make every reasonable effort to avoid placing additional trauma on the child by obtaining such custody at times and in a manner least disruptive to the child. The law enforce…
Wash. Rev. Code § 13.34.060
Shelter care—Placement—Custody—Duties of parties
(1) A child taken into custody pursuant to RCW 13.34.050 or 26.44.050 shall be immediately placed in shelter care. A child taken by a relative of the child in violation of RCW 9A.40.060 or 9A.40.070 shall be placed in shelter care only when permitted under RCW 13.34.055. No child may be held longer than seventy-two hou…
Wash. Rev. Code § 13.34.062
Shelter care—Notice of custody and rights
(1)(a) Whenever a child is taken into custody by child protective services pursuant to a court order issued under RCW 13.34.050 or when child protective services is notified that a child has been taken into custody pursuant to RCW 26.44.050 or 26.44.056, child protective services shall make diligent efforts to inform t…
Wash. Rev. Code § 13.34.065
Shelter care—Hearing—Recommendation as to further need—Release
(1)(a) When a child is removed or when the petitioner is seeking the removal of a child from the child's parent, guardian, or legal custodian, the court shall hold a shelter care hearing within 72 hours, excluding Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays. The primary purpose of the shelter care hearing is to determine whether…
Wash. Rev. Code § 13.34.067
Shelter care—Case conference—Service agreement
(1)(a) Following shelter care and no later than thirty days prior to fact-finding, the department shall convene a case conference as required in the shelter care order to develop and specify in a written service agreement the expectations of both the department and the parent regarding voluntary services for the parent…
Wash. Rev. Code § 13.34.069
Shelter care—Order and authorization of health care and education records
If a child is placed in the custody of the department of children, youth, and families or other *supervising agency, immediately following the shelter care hearing, an order and authorization regarding health care and education records for the child shall be entered. The order shall:(1) Provide the department or other…
Wash. Rev. Code § 13.34.070
Summons when petition filed—Service procedure—Hearing, when—Contempt upon failure to appear—Required notice regarding Indian children
(1) Upon the filing of the petition, the petitioner shall issue a summons, one directed to the child, if the child is twelve or more years of age, and another to the parents, guardian, or custodian, and such other persons as appear to the court to be proper or necessary parties to the proceedings, requiring them to app…
Wash. Rev. Code § 13.34.080
Summons when petition filed—Publication of notice
(1) The court shall direct the petitioner to publish notice in a legal newspaper, as described under RCW 65.16.020, once a week for three consecutive weeks, with the first publication of the notice to be at least twenty-five days prior to the date fixed for the hearing when it appears by the petition or verified statem…
Wash. Rev. Code § 13.34.090
Rights under chapter proceedings
(1) Any party has a right to be represented by an attorney in all proceedings under this chapter, to introduce evidence, to be heard in his or her own behalf, to examine witnesses, to receive a decision based solely on the evidence adduced at the hearing, and to an unbiased fact finder.(2) At all stages of a proceeding…
Wash. Rev. Code § 13.34.092
Rights under chapter proceedings—Appointment of counsel—Notice
At the commencement of the shelter care hearing the court shall advise the parties of basic rights as provided in RCW 13.34.090 and appoint counsel to the child's parent, guardian, or legal custodian pursuant to RCW 13.34.090 if the parent, guardian, or legal custodian is indigent unless counsel has been retained by th…
Wash. Rev. Code § 13.34.094
Description of services provided to parents
The department shall, within existing resources, provide to parents requesting or participating in a multidisciplinary team, family group conference, case conference, or prognostic staffing information that describes these processes prior to the processes being undertaken.
Wash. Rev. Code § 13.34.096
Right to be heard—Notice
(1) The department shall provide the child's foster parents, preadoptive parents, or other caregivers with timely and adequate notice of their right to be heard prior to each proceeding held with respect to the child in juvenile court under this chapter. For purposes of this section, "timely and adequate notice" means…
Wash. Rev. Code § 13.34.100
Appointment of guardian ad litem—Background information—Rights—Notification and inquiry—Review and removal
(1) The court shall appoint a guardian ad litem for a child who is the subject of an action under this chapter, unless a court for good cause finds the appointment unnecessary. The requirement of a guardian ad litem may be deemed satisfied if the child is represented by an independent attorney in the proceedings. The c…
Wash. Rev. Code § 13.34.102
Guardian ad litem—Training—Registry—Selection—Substitution—Exception
(1) All guardians ad litem must comply with the training requirements established under RCW 2.56.030(15), prior to their appointment in cases under Title 13 RCW, except that volunteer guardians ad litem or court-appointed special advocates may comply with alternative training requirements approved by the administrative…
Wash. Rev. Code § 13.34.105
Guardian ad litem—Duties—Immunity—Access to information
(1) Unless otherwise directed by the court, the duties of the guardian ad litem for a child subject to a proceeding under this chapter, including an attorney specifically appointed by the court to serve as a guardian ad litem, include but are not limited to the following:(a) To investigate, collect relevant information…
Wash. Rev. Code § 13.34.107
Guardian ad litem—Ex parte communications—Removal
A guardian ad litem or court-appointed special advocate shall not engage in ex parte communications with any judicial officer involved in the matter for which he or she is appointed during the pendency of the proceeding, except as permitted by court rule or statute for ex parte motions. Ex parte motions shall be heard…
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