Oneida County Department of Social Services v. Nicole W.

2007 WI 30, 728 N.W.2d 652, 299 Wis. 2d 637, 2007 Wisc. LEXIS 28
CourtWisconsin Supreme Court
DecidedMarch 13, 2007
Docket2005AP2656
StatusPublished
Cited by64 cases

This text of 2007 WI 30 (Oneida County Department of Social Services v. Nicole W.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Wisconsin Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Oneida County Department of Social Services v. Nicole W., 2007 WI 30, 728 N.W.2d 652, 299 Wis. 2d 637, 2007 Wisc. LEXIS 28 (Wis. 2007).

Opinions

PATIENCE DRAKE ROGGENSACK, J.

¶ 1. This is a review of an unpublished decision of the court of appeals1 affirming the circuit court's order2 terminating Nicole Ws (Nicole) parental rights to her daughter, Brianca M.W. (Brianca). The focus of Nicole's appeal is that the circuit court erred in granting partial summary judgment under Wis. Stat. § 48.415(10) because her parental rights to her other child, Rockey, were terminated in a default judgment. Nicole contends that there was insufficient evidence demonstrating the particularized grounds for the termination of Nicole's parental rights in regard to Rockey, which precludes the use of that termination under § 48.415(10)(b) and that a default judgment is not a "termination on grounds," as she interprets § 48.415(10)(b). Consequently, Nicole argues, partial summary judgment should not have been granted and her parental rights were unlawfully terminated.

[643]*643¶ 2. We conclude that Wis. Stat. § 48.415(10)(b) does not require proof of which § 48.415 ground was relied upon for a prior termination of parental rights because the phrase, "on one or more of the grounds specified in this section," in § 48.415(10)(b) refers to proving only that the prior termination was an involuntary termination. We also conclude that the order terminating Nicole's parental rights to Rockey, which arose from her default for failing to comply with a court order to personally appear at the fact-finding hearing, cannot be collaterally attacked in this proceeding and is sufficient evidence to prove that there was a prior involuntary termination of Nicole's rights to another child. Accordingly, we affirm the court of appeals.

I. BACKGROUND

¶ 3. Nicole's daughter, Brianca, was born on October 21,2003. Brianca was placed in foster care shortly after birth and has continued in foster care through the time of trial.3 On March 11, 2005, the Oneida County Department of Human Services (the Department) filed a petition to terminate Nicole's parental rights to Brianca. The petition alleged two grounds for the termination of Nicole's parental rights: Wis. Stat. § 48.415(2), Brianca's continuing need of protection or services and § 48.415(10), the involuntary termination of Nicole's parental rights to another child within the previous three years.

¶ 4. The Department moved for partial summary judgment on the second ground, relying on an order [644]*644filed in Waukesha County on February 3, 2003 that involuntarily terminated Nicole's parental rights to her son, Rockey.4 The order states that Nicole was in default because she failed to appear at the fact-finding hearing and that the termination of her rights to Rockey was involuntary, but it does not state the precise grounds for the involuntary termination. To explain more fully, section 6 of the standard order form that the Waukesha County Circuit Court employed contains a list of all of the grounds found in Wis. Stat. § 48.415 for an involuntary termination. Opposite each ground is a box to check, which when checked would indicate that ground was a basis for the termination. However, the circuit court checked none of the boxes in section 6 of the form. The petition that commenced the Waukesha County termination of parental rights proceedings alleged that Nicole had abandoned Rockey, § 48.415(1), and that Rockey was in continuing need of protection or services, § 48.415(2).

¶ 5. In the present Oneida County termination proceedings, two hearings were held on the Department's motion for partial summary judgment. At the first hearing, Nicole argued that the order terminating her rights to Rockey was not sufficient because it was not a "termination on grounds," as she interprets Wis. Stat. § 48.415(10)(b), because the order was based on her default at the termination proceedings. The court reviewed the Waukesha order, which stated that Nicole was in default but did not state the specific grounds employed for the involuntary termination. The court then continued the hearing to allow the Department to produce a copy of the Waukesha petition to [645]*645determine whether grounds sufficient under § 48.415 had been alleged. At the second hearing, the court reviewed the petition in combination with the Wauke-sha County Circuit Court order and determined that the order was sufficient to establish an involuntary termination of parental rights within the criteria set out in § 49.415(10)(b).5

¶ 6. Nicole appealed and repeated her argument that the termination of her parental rights to Rockey based on her default was not "based on grounds" as she interprets Wis. Stat. § 48.415(10). Nicole also argued that the default order did not show the circuit court had made findings of fact based on evidence presented to show the county had proved the grounds alleged and therefore, the prior termination order was insufficient in that way as well.

¶ 7. The court of appeals rejected Nicole's arguments and affirmed the circuit court's decision. The court of appeals reasoned that because the prior termination was involuntary, a fact that Nicole does not contest, it was necessarily accomplished on one of the grounds listed in Wis. Stat. § 48.415. See Oneida County Dep't of Soc. Servs. v. Nicole W., No. 2005AP2656, unpublished slip op., ¶ 10 (Wis. Ct. App. February 7, 2006). The court of appeals also concluded that an order demonstrating an involuntary termination of parental rights to another child within the previous three years, as required in § 48.415(10)(b), was the only proof the Department was required to submit. The court of appeals reasoned that even with a default judgment rendered because Nicole failed to comply with a court [646]*646order to personally appear at the fact-finding hearing as the basis for terminating parental rights, the Department must have proved the grounds for the termination by clear and convincing evidence. Id., ¶ 11. The court stated, "[t]o require the type of extensive review suggested by Nicole would be tantamount to permitting a collateral attack on the prior TPR." Id., ¶ 12.

II. DISCUSSION

A. Standard of Review

¶ 8. We review the partial grant of summary judgment independently, applying the same methodology as the . circuit court. Hoida, Inc. v. M&I Midstate Bank, 2006 WI 69, ¶ 15, 291 Wis. 2d 283, 717 N.W.2d 17. Summary judgment is appropriate when there is no genuine issue of material fact and the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. Id.; Wis. Stat. § 802.08(2).

¶ 9.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

State v. M. W.
Court of Appeals of Wisconsin, 2025
Nathan Huiras
E.D. Wisconsin, 2025
Marathon County v. S. S.
Court of Appeals of Wisconsin, 2025
Jackson County DHS v. I. J. R.
Court of Appeals of Wisconsin, 2024
Dane County DHS v. J. K.
Court of Appeals of Wisconsin, 2024
Columbia County DH&HS v. S. A. J.
Court of Appeals of Wisconsin, 2024
J. S. v. J. T.
Court of Appeals of Wisconsin, 2023
Rebecca Clarke v. Wisconsin Elections Commission
2023 WI 70 (Wisconsin Supreme Court, 2023)
State v. S. A.
Court of Appeals of Wisconsin, 2023
State v. I. B.
Court of Appeals of Wisconsin, 2023
Brown County Department of Human Services v. S. K.
Court of Appeals of Wisconsin, 2023
Portage County DH&HS v. C. S.
Court of Appeals of Wisconsin, 2023
State v. O. F.
Court of Appeals of Wisconsin, 2023
L. E. H. v. R. E. M.
Court of Appeals of Wisconsin, 2022
Portage County DH&HS v. S. Z.
Court of Appeals of Wisconsin, 2022
Portage County DH&HS v. C. Z.
Court of Appeals of Wisconsin, 2022
State v. Q. M.
Court of Appeals of Wisconsin, 2022

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
2007 WI 30, 728 N.W.2d 652, 299 Wis. 2d 637, 2007 Wisc. LEXIS 28, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/oneida-county-department-of-social-services-v-nicole-w-wis-2007.