{"id":31425,"date":"2018-02-05T15:00:18","date_gmt":"2018-02-05T15:00:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/caseyfamilyv2.wpengine.com\/how-have-states-implemented-parental-rights-restoration-and-reinstatement-2\/"},"modified":"2026-03-31T23:24:13","modified_gmt":"2026-03-31T23:24:13","slug":"how-have-states-implemented-parental-rights-restoration-and-reinstatement","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.casey.org\/es\/how-have-states-implemented-parental-rights-restoration-and-reinstatement\/","title":{"rendered":"\u00bfC\u00f3mo han implementado los estados la restituci\u00f3n y el restablecimiento de los derechos parentales?"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Parental rights restoration and reinstatement is an important option for the small group of youth who have been languishing in foster care and whose parents have managed to address and remedy the issues that prompted the termination of their parental rights.1<\/sup><\/a> It provides a potential path to permanency for youth who would otherwise age out of foster care. As child advocacy attorney Meredith Schalick asserts (2014), \u201c[I]t is worthwhile to look at all options for permanency for legal orphans created by the child welfare system\u2019s practices and timeframes, including the possibility that, after a designated period of time, the biological parents would be able to provide a safe and permanent family for their biological children.\u201d2<\/sup><\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n \n \n \n <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

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[I]t is worthwhile to look at all options for permanency for legal orphans created by the child welfare system\u2019s practices and timeframes, including the possibility that, after a designated period of time, the biological parents would be able to provide a safe and permanent family for their biological children.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

— Meredith Schalick, child advocacy attorney<\/cite><\/figcaption>\n <\/div>\n\n <\/div>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n
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Nearly half of states (24 as of August 7, 2017) have passed laws authorizing reinstatement\/restoration of parental rights post termination, beginning with California in 2005.3<\/sup><\/a>,<\/sup>4<\/sup><\/a> Over the last 12 years, states have increasingly enacted such legislation to provide children, parents, courts, guardians ad litem, and child welfare agencies with a legal avenue to secure lifelong family connection and permanency for those youth who have ultimately become \u201clegal orphans:\u201d<\/p>\n

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In the dependency court system, a legal orphan is a child whose parents\u2019 rights have been terminated and who has no legal permanent connection to a family. The child remains in foster care and has not been adopted or placed in a legal relationship with a guardian or with kin. A legal orphan may have no legal relationship with her parents\u2019 extended families, might not inherit from his parents or their families, and is effectively a child of the state. With no family connections, these children frequently age-out of the foster care system once they reach adulthood. At that point, they face statistically poor outcomes.<\/i>5<\/sup><\/a><\/p>\n

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Several other resources summarize approaches to parental restoration and reinstatement:<\/p>\n<\/div>\n \n \n \n <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

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Additional resources<\/span><\/div>\n \n \n \n \n

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National Resource Center for Permanency & Family Connections, Reinstating Parental Rights for Youth in Care <\/i>(2011)<\/a><\/strong>
\nThis webinar focuses on defining legal orphans and explores approaches to reinstating parental rights.<\/p>\n

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O\u2019Donnell, A Second Chance for Children and Families: A Model Statute To Reinstate Parental Rights After Termination<\/em> (2010)<\/a><\/strong>
\nThis article explains how, in limited circumstances, it is in the best interest of the child to vacate an order of termination and reinstate parental rights.<\/p>\n

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Taylor, Resurrecting Parents of Legal Orphans: Un-Terminating Parental Rights<\/em> (2010)<\/a><\/strong>
\nRecognizing the need for more uniform solutions to the problems created when a child loses legal rights to his or her biological parents without those rights being replaced through adoption, this article examines the current efforts to address the increasing number of legal orphans created each year.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n \n \n \n <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

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Key highlights6<\/sup><\/a><\/h2>\n

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As of August 7, 2017, 24 states have provisions for reinstating or restoring the rights of a parent whose rights have previously been terminated. For the court to consider reinstatement or restoration of parental rights:<\/p>\n

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  1. There must be evidence of the parent\u2019s substantial progress in correcting the previous conditions that led to the termination of parental rights;<\/span><\/li>\n
  2. The parent must be both able and willing to provide the child a safe, permanent home;<\/span><\/li>\n
  3. The reinstatement\/restoration must be in the best interests of the child; and<\/span><\/li>\n
  4. Both the parent and the child must agree to the reinstatement.7<\/sup><\/a><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
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    1. <\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

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      The table below provides highlights from a review of current state legislation:<\/p>\n<\/div>\n \n \n \n <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

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      Highlights of state restoration\/reinstatement statutes<\/span><\/div>\n \n

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      The state has a reinstatement or restoration law.<\/strong><\/p>\n

      Jurisdictions:<\/p>\n