Margaret Sees, Plaintiff-Appellant v. Charles K. Baber and Jerri Baber, Defendants-Respondents

Summary

The Supreme Court of New Jersey reversed the trial and appellate courts' finding that the mother had forsaken her parental obligations and terminated her parental rights, holding that her brief change of mind negated any abandonment. The Court ordered the immediate return of the child to the mother without further hearing and remanded for compliance. Justice Clifford dissented, warning that the reversal creates uncertainty for adoptive parents and should be preceded by a Sorentino hearing. Justice Sullivan concurred, agreeing with the result but urging a statutory right to revoke a private surrender within a reasonable period.