Children Issues with the Department of Social 服务

If your case involves the Department of Social 服务, you may need representation to protect your parental rights. North Carolina has specific statutes regarding the abuse 和 忽视 of children that are quite tedious 和 complex. Having an attorney experienced in these matters evaluate your case with you can be extremely helpful. The Department of Social 服务 is a powerful agency that can file a petition to strip you of your parental rights 和 remove your children from your home.

The Department of Social 服务 has established Child Protective 服务 for juveniles alleged to be abused, 被忽视的, 或依赖, which are all technical terms defined in the statute. N.C.G.S. §7B-300 notes that “protective services shall include the screening of reports, the performance of an assessment using either a family assessment response or an investigative assessment response, 生活环境调查, 或为家长提供其他咨询服务, 监护人, or other caretakers as provided by the director to help the parents, 监护人, or other caretakers 和 the court to prevent abuse or 忽视, 提高儿童保育质量, 做更称职的父母, 监护人, 或看护人, 和 to preserve 和 stabilize family life.”

As you can see by the above quoted statutory language, the Department of Social 服务 has authority to take a wide range of actions under the umbrella of Child Protective 服务. This authority kicks in as soon as a child is alleged to be abused, 被忽视的, 或依赖. 因此, one allegation – maybe from a disgruntled ex-spouse – can get the powerful Department of Social 服务 involved in your life 和 your child’s life, giving them the authority to take a number of actions without your consent. 

根据N.C.G.S. §7B-302, ，如果评估表明存在虐待行为, 忽视, 或者发生了依赖性, the director shall decide whether immediate removal of the juvenile or any other juveniles in the home is necessary for their protection.这意味着, following an assessment of the household, the Department of Social 服务 has the ability to remove the child from the home, if they make the determination that there has been abuse, 忽视, 或依赖 和 removal is needed to protect the child. 因此, the Department of Social 服务 has a lot of power over your child once they get involved. 再一次。, the only thing required for their involvement is an allegation of abuse, 忽视, 或依赖. 

Department of Social 服务 not only has the authority to remove your child from your home, but they also have the power to ask a Judge to terminate your parental rights entirely – provided grounds exist under the statute 和 they follow the proper procedure. This demonstrates the power of the Department of Social 服务, one of the main reasons why it is a good idea to have an experienced family law attorney at your side throughout the entire process. 

没有经验丰富的律师, you may have to deal with the involvement of the Department of Social 服务 longer than necessary 和 your child’s life may be disrupted to a greater extent than necessary.  Our family law attorneys here at 伍德拉夫家庭律师事务所 have the experience to assist you in such matters, along with many other family legal matters.