Trisha A., Appellant v. Department of Child Safety, L.a., L.a., Appellees. — Bolick, J., Dissenting

Summary

Justice Bolick dissented from the Court’s decision requiring a parent whose parental rights were terminated after an accelerated hearing to show both good cause for missing the hearing and a meritorious defense to the termination petition. He reasoned that the juvenile rules require only good cause, that importing a civil-default requirement undermines procedural due process, and that the accelerated process creates a substantial risk of erroneous and irreversible termination. Justice Bolick would have affirmed the court of appeals’ conclusion that the proceedings deprived the mother of a fundamentally fair severance hearing.