In re P.S., 242 N.C. App. 430 (2015)
Held:
Dismissed
- Procedural history: After a child was adjudicated neglected, the action was transferred to another judicial district for the initial dispositional hearing. At adjudication, the court entered a temporary disposition order that granted custody of the child to DSS and approved the child’s current placement with a relative pending the dispositional hearing and order. Respondent mother appealed the adjudication and change of venue.
- G.S. 7B-1001(a) authorizes an appeal of a “final order.” An adjudication is not a “final order” until there is a final disposition order after the dispositional hearing. Citing prior cases, G.S. 7B-1001(a)(3) does not authorize an appeal of a temporary disposition order. Appeal of the adjudication must be made after the dispositional hearing is held and a “final” initial dispositional order is entered.
- A change in custody made in a temporary disposition order prior to the initial dispositional hearing is similar to a nonsecure custody order or an interlocutory temporary custody order in a G.S. Chapter 50 civil custody action, neither of which may be appealed. A temporary dispositional order is not “an order that changes legal custody of a juvenile” that may be appealed pursuant to G.S. 7B-1001(a)(4).
Category:
Abuse, Neglect, DependencyStage:
AppealTopic:
Appealable Order