Juvenile Officer v. Missouri Department of Social Services

477 S.W.3d 171, 2015 Mo. App. LEXIS 1209, 2015 WL 7455014
CourtMissouri Court of Appeals
DecidedNovember 24, 2015
DocketNo. ED 102694
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 477 S.W.3d 171 (Juvenile Officer v. Missouri Department of Social Services) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Missouri Court of Appeals primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Juvenile Officer v. Missouri Department of Social Services, 477 S.W.3d 171, 2015 Mo. App. LEXIS 1209, 2015 WL 7455014 (Mo. Ct. App. 2015).

Opinion

ROBERT G. DOWD, Presiding Judge

The Children’s Division of the Department of Social Services (“the Division”) appeals from the trial court’s judgment mandating that the Division provide all benefits and services to Cassandra Owens as would normally be given to a licensed foster care provider. We reverse and remand.

The juvenile court entered an order of temporary protective custody with respect to LC. Shortly thereafter, the juvenile court held a protective custody hearing, at which it determined L.C. was to remain within the court’s jurisdiction and in the legal custody of the Division.

Subsequently, the juvenile officer filed a first amended petition regarding L.C., which sought to have the court enter any orders, judgments, or decrees as may be found necessary in the best interest of L.C. The first amended petition alleged that “said juvenile comes within the provisions of Section 211.031.1(1)” because she was residing with her paternal grandmother, Owens, when the case began. In addition, the petition stated L.C. would be at risk of neglect if she were returned to the custody of her mother at that time. L.C.’s father was incarcerated and was, as a result, unable to care for L.C.

The court held a hearing on the juvenile officer’s first amended petition and determined L.C. was “without proper care, custody or support and, therefore, is a Juvenile[ ] within the provisions of Section 211.031.1.” Thus, the court found it was in L.C.’s best interests to remain in protective custody and be in the legal custody of the Division. The court also noted Mother was not an appropriate custodian for L.C. and that Father also was not an appropriate custodian.

The court then entered an order and judgment of disposition in which it ordered that legal custody of the L.C. shall be granted to the Division for appropriate placement and that placement with Owens is an appropriate physical placement. In this ruling, the court also ordered the Divi[173]*173sion to comply with the specific orders on Exhibit C. In Exhibit C, the court ordered the Division to, among other things, “license Owens once traffic matters are cleared up.”

The Division filed a motion td modify the court’s order and judgment of disposition. In particular, the Division requested that the court rescind the provision of its judgment ordering the Division to license Owens. The Division also filed a motion to rehear this issue, which was-granted.

At the hearing on the motion to modify, the Division established that Owens had previously applied for foster care-licensure and had her application refused. Owens did not file a petition for judicial review of the Division’s denial.

In its subsequent judgment, the court found the Division had previously denied a license to Owens on grounds that the court found were arbitrary, capricious, and an abuse of discretion. However, the court noted it did not have discretion to order the Division to issue such a license no matter how unfounded the denial, unless an appropriate administrative review had been filed by Owens. The Division also found that, at this point, because she did not appeal the denial of her foster care license, Owens does not have an adequate remedy at law to redress the denial of a foster care license. The court noted, however, that it retained the authority to order that necessary services be provided. The court held that placement with Owens under Section 210.565 is in L.C.’s best interests and it was necessary for L.C.’s welfare for services to be provided to L.C. and Owens as if Owens was a licensed child care provider. Thus, the court ordered the Division to provide such services as the failure of Owens to receive these necessary services would render this ruling meaningless. In conclusion, the court ordered that “it [was] in the best interests of [L.C.] that the [Division] shall provide all benefits and services to [Owens], as caretaker of [L.C.] herein, as would normally be given to a licensed foster care provider.” This appeal follows.

Before1 addressing the merits of the appeal, we note' the parties disagree on whether the Division has standing to appeal the judgment here. We must address this question before we can address the merits of the appeal.

The juvenile officer asserts the Division does not have standing because, according to Rule 120.01(a), appeals from juvenile court proceedings are allowed as provided by statute. Section 211.261.1, the statute allowing appeals from juvenile court proceedings, provides in pertinent part:

An appeal shall be allowed to the child from any final judgment, order or decree made under the provisions of this chapter and may be taken on the part of the child by its parent, .guardian, legal custodian, spouse,- relative or next friend. An appeal shall be allowed to a parent from any final judgment, order or decree made under the provisions of this chapter which adversely affects him. An appeal shall be allowed to the juvenile officer from any final judgment, order or decree made under this chapter....

Section 211.261.21 provides an avenue to appeal from- a juvenile court judgment. Because it does not include a provision allowing the Division to appeal, the juvenile officer is correct to point out the Division, has no standing to bring the immediate appeal under Section 211.261. In the Interest of D.T. and L.T., 248 S.W.3d 74, 77 (Mo.App.W.D.2008).

However, we must also consider whether or not the, Division may have standing to appeal pursuant to Section 512.020. Id. Section 512.020 provides “Any party to a suit aggrieved by any judgment of any trial court in any civil [174]*174cause from which an appeal is not prohibited by the constitution, nor clearly limited in special statutory proceedings, may take his or her appeal to a court having appellate jurisdiction from any .... final judgment in the case.” Thus, for the Division to have standing, we must conclude, among other things, that it was an aggrieved party.

A party is “aggrieved” when the judgment operates - prejudicially and directly on his personal or property rights or interest. In re Knichel, 347 S.W.3d 127, 130 (Mo.App.E.D.2011). To be an aggrieved party, an appellant must possess a pecuniary interest adversely affected by the probate court’s final judgment. Id. at 131. The Division was a party to the suit as the legal custodian of L.C. Further, the Division.was ordered to provide all benefits and services to Owens as caretaker of L.C. as would normally be given to a licensed foster- care provider. As a result, we find the Division- was an aggrieved party and has standing to, appeal the judgment of the juvenile court. -We now turn to the merits of the Division’s appeal.

The standard of review is the same as any other court-tried civil case, under which we reverse only if there is no substantial evidence to support it, it is against the weight of the evidence, or it erroneously declares or applies the law. In re W.B., 162 S.W.3d 517, 522 (Mo.App.W.D.2005). Questions of law are reviewed de novo. Id.

Because we find the Division’s second point to be dispositive, we addi'ess it first.

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477 S.W.3d 171, 2015 Mo. App. LEXIS 1209, 2015 WL 7455014, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/juvenile-officer-v-missouri-department-of-social-services-moctapp-2015.