Right to counsel

A court must appoint counsel for an indigent parent if a child has been placed, or the petitioning agency is recommending that the child be placed, in out-of-home care. Cal. Wel. & Inst. Code § 317(b).  Appointment of counsel is also required for the indigent parent or indigent Indian custodian of an Indian child custody proceeding”. Id. at (a)(2); see also § 224.1(d) (defining “Indian child custody proceeding”).  Otherwise, appointment is discretionary. Cal. Wel. & Inst. Code § 317(a)(1).

Though timing of appointment is not specified, Section (d) states, “Counsel shall represent the parent, guardian, child, or nonminor dependent at the detention hearing and at all subsequent proceedings before the juvenile court.” Cal. Wel. & Inst. Code § 317.  In addition, notices issued to the parents in dependent child proceedings include a statement about the right to counsel and the procedure to obtain appointed counsel.

See e.g., Cal. Wel. & Inst. Code § 291(d)(6)(B),(C)&(D); § 292(d); § 224.3(a)(5)(H)(vi) (notice to the parent of an Indian child or Indian custodian for hearings “that may culminate in an order for foster care placement, [TPR], preadoptive placement, or adoptive placement” and where “the court, a social worker, or probation officer knows or has reason to know… that an Indian child is involved”. If the hearing does not meet the definition of an “Indian child custody proceeding… or is not an emergency proceeding, notice … shall be sent in accordance with Sections 292, 293, and 295” per § 224.3[g]); § 293(d) (but excluding statement as to the procedure to obtain counsel).

The right to counsel applies on appeals, at least for appellant parents (as opposed to respondent parents). See In re Chantal S., 913 P.2d 1075, 1084 (Cal. 1996) (“indigent parents who appeal from juvenile court final orders have a right to appointed counsel on appeal”).