S.H. v. J.H. and H.H. (mem. dec.)

• Court: Indiana Court of Appeals
• Decided: October 26, 2020
• Docket: 20A-AD-994
• Status: Published

Opinion

MEMORANDUM DECISION Pursuant to Ind. Appellate Rule 65(D), this Memorandum Decision shall not be FILED regarded as precedent or cited before any Oct 26 2020, 9:36 am

court except for the purpose of establishing CLERK the defense of res judicata, collateral Indiana Supreme Court Court of Appeals and Tax Court estoppel, or the law of the case.

ATTORNEY FOR APPELLANT ATTORNEY FOR APPELLEES Zachary A. Smith Charles P. Rice Trapp Law, LLC Murphy Rice, LLP Indianapolis, Indiana South Bend, Indiana

IN THE COURT OF APPEALS OF INDIANA

S.H., October 26, 2020 Appellant, Court of Appeals Case No. 20A-AD-994 v. Appeal from the Hamilton Superior Court J.H. and H.H., The Honorable Jonathan M. Appellees. Brown, Judge Trial Court Cause No. 29D02-2004-AD-634

Najam, Judge.

Court of Appeals of Indiana | Memorandum Decision 20A-AD-994 | October 26, 2020 Page 1 of 8 Statement of the Case [1] S.H. (“Mother”) appeals the trial court’s judicial acknowledgement of her

consent to the adoption of her minor child. Mother raises three issues for our

review, which we revise and restate as the following two issues:

1. Whether the trial court erred when it accepted Mother’s consent to the adoption.

2. Whether Indiana should require a birth mother to wait a certain period of time after the birth of her child prior to executing a consent to the child’s adoption.

[2] We affirm.

Facts and Procedural History [3] On April 1, 2020, Mother, who was nineteen years old, gave birth to a child

(“Child”). The next day, Mother went to an adoption agency to “talk to them

more about [her] adoption plan.” Tr. at 6. While there, Mother read and

signed a waiver of notice and consent for adoption of Child. The notice stated

that “the signing of this consent to adoption will result in a complete

termination of [Mother’s] parental rights” and that Mother’s “consent to the

adoption may not be withdrawn” unless Mother petitioned the court in a timely

manner. Appellant’s App. Vol. 2 at 15-16 (emphasis removed). The waiver

further stated that Mother “hereby voluntarily, unconditionally, and

irrevocably” consents to Child’s adoption. Id. at 16-17 (emphasis removed).

Court of Appeals of Indiana | Memorandum Decision 20A-AD-994 | October 26, 2020 Page 2 of 8 [4] In addition, the notice provided that Mother: was not under the influence of

any alcohol or drugs; had had “enough time to carefully consider whether or

not adoption” was in her own bests interests; was “fully aware of all

implications of” the consent; and had “chosen not to be represented by an

attorney.” Id. at 15-16. Mother initialed each paragraph of the consent form

and signed it at 7:33 p.m. on April 2.

[5] At the same time, Mother also read and signed a relinquishment of parental

rights and consent to adoption checklist. In that checklist, Mother

acknowledged that she was “not under the influence of any drug, medication,

or any substance” that might affect her judgment, that she had no obligation to

proceed with an adoption, that she “may take more time in order to give her

decision more thought,” and that she had the right to consult with an attorney.

Id. at 21. At 8:39 p.m. that evening, J.H. and. H.F. (collectively, “Adoptive

Parents”) filed a petition to adopt Child. Adoptive Parents attached to their

petition a copy of the documents Mother had signed at the adoption agency.

[6] At 9:00 a.m. on April 3, the court held a telephonic hearing on Mother’s

consent to the adoption. Mother appeared at that hearing pro se. During the

hearing, Mother agreed that she had “understood” each paragraph and that no

one had pressured her “in any manner” to sign the documents. Tr. at 7.

Mother also stated that she understood that, if the court accepted her consent,

she would “have no period of time to withdraw” that consent. Id. at 8. Mother

then reiterated that she had signed the consent forms voluntarily and that she

still wished to proceed with the hearing.

Court of Appeals of Indiana | Memorandum Decision 20A-AD-994 | October 26, 2020 Page 3 of 8 [7] Following that hearing, the court issued an order in which it found that “there

has been no showing of duress or force” concerning the signing of either

document. Appellant’s App. Vol. 2 at 7. The court also found that Mother

understood “the consequences of the signing of” the consent forms and that she

had freely and voluntarily signed the documents. Id. Accordingly, the court

entered a judicial acknowledgment accepting Mother’s consent to the adoption.

The court then made “an express determination that there is no just reason for

delay and expressly direct[ed] entry of final and appealable judgment as to” its

acknowledgment of Mother’s consent. Id. at 8.

[8] Thereafter, on April 27, Mother, while represented by counsel, filed a notice

with the trial court in which she “formally withd[rew] her consent to the

adoption” of Child. Id. at 27. In support of her motion, Mother stated that,

“shortly after” April 2, she had informed the adoption agency of her desire to

withdraw consent. Id. At a hearing on Mother’s motion, Mother argued that

she had signed the forms under duress. Following the hearing, the court found

that, because it had previously accepted Mother’s consent, Mother’s motion

was “untimely filed.” Id. at 9. This appeal ensued.

Court of Appeals of Indiana | Memorandum Decision 20A-AD-994 | October 26, 2020 Page 4 of 8 Discussion and Decision Issue One: Validity of Consent to Adoption

[9] Mother appeals the court’s judicial acknowledgement accepting her consent to

the adoption of Child. 1 As our Supreme Court has recently stated:

In family law matters, we generally give considerable deference to the trial court’s decision because we recognize that the trial judge is in the best position to judge the facts, determine witness credibility, get a feel for the family dynamics, and get a sense of the parents and their relationships with their children. Accordingly, when reviewing an adoption case, we presume that the trial court’s decision is correct, and the appellant bears the burden of rebutting this presumption.

The trial court’s findings and judgment will be set aside only if they are clearly erroneous. A judgment is clearly erroneous when there is no evidence to support the findings or the findings fail to support the judgment. We will not reweigh evidence or assess the credibility of witnesses. Rather, we examine the evidence in the light most favorable to the trial court’s decision.

J.W. v. D.F. (In re E.B.F.), 93 N.E.3d 759, 762 (Ind. 2018) (cleaned up).

[10] On appeal, Mother asserts that the court erred when it accepted her consent to

Child’s adoption because her consent was not voluntary. It is well settled that,

1 Adoptive Parents have filed a motion to dismiss Mother’s appeal from the April 27 order because that order was neither a final order nor an interlocutory appeal as of right and because Mother did not seek to have it certified as an interlocutory order. We have granted that motion in a separate order. However, because in substance Mother’s appeal is from the court’s April 3 order, our grant of Adoptive Parents’ motion to dismiss has no effect on our resolution of this appeal.

Court of Appeals of Indiana | Memorandum Decision 20A-AD-994 | October 26, 2020 Page 5 of 8 for a parent’s consent to an adoption to be valid, it must be voluntary. See K.F.

v. B.B., 145 N.E.3d 813, 824 (Ind. Ct. App. 2020), trans. denied. A consent is

voluntary if it is “an act of the parent’s own volition, free from duress, fraud, or

any other consent-vitiating factor, and if it is made with knowledge of the

essential facts.” Bell v. Doe (In re Adoption of A.R.H.), 654 N.E.2d 29, 32 (Ind. Ct.

App. 1995)).

[11] Here, Mother contends that she “did not understand that her consent would be

irrevocable[.]” Appellant’s Br. at 9. In addition, Mother asserts that the trial

court “failed to inquire” into whether Mother was under the influence of any

drugs as a result of giving birth at the time she executed the consent. Id. at 11.

And Mother contends that she only had a “limited time” following the birth of

Child to execute her consent such that she did not have time to contact an

attorney. Appellant’s Br at 14. Accordingly, Mother maintains that her

consent was not voluntary.

[12] The evidence demonstrates that, following her discharge from the hospital,

Mother went to the adoption agency to talk “more” about her adoption plan for

Child. Tr. at 6. While at the agency, Mother read and signed a consent form.

By signing that form, Mother acknowledged that she “voluntarily,

unconditionally, and irrevocably” consented to Child’s adoption. Appellant’s

App. Vol. 2 at 16-17. Mother also agreed that she was not under the influence

of any drugs, that she had had “enough time” to consider the adoption, and

that she had “chosen” not to be represented by an attorney. Id. at 15-16.

Court of Appeals of Indiana | Memorandum Decision 20A-AD-994 | October 26, 2020 Page 6 of 8 [13] In addition, Mother also signed a checklist in which she agreed that she was not

under the influence of any medication that might affect her judgment, that she

“may take more time” to consider her options, and that she had the right to

consult an attorney. Id. at 21. Further, at a hearing on Mother’s consent,

Mother acknowledged that she had understood each paragraph of the consent

forms. Mother understood that, if the court accepted her consent, she would

“have no period of time to withdraw” that consent. Tr. at 8. And Mother

twice informed the court that she had signed the documents voluntarily and

that she wanted to procced with the hearing. See id. at 7-9. That evidence

supports the trial court’s findings that Mother understood the consequences of

signing the consent forms and that she had signed the forms voluntarily. The

trial court did not err when it accepted Mother’s consent to Child’s adoption.

Issue Two: Waiting Period Prior to Consent to Adoption

[14] Mother next asks us to impose a waiting period between the birth of a child and

the execution of a consent to an adoption. Specifically, Mother states that

“Indiana is only one of twenty (20) States that allow biological mothers to sign

consents for adoptions as soon as they have the baby.” Appellant’s Br. at 15.

And Mother maintains that, had she been required to wait a certain period of

time before she could sign the consent forms, she “would have been better able

to assess her situation.” Id. at 17. Accordingly, Mother asks us to require “a

reasonable waiting period in line with the majority of States between giving

birth and signing an irrevocable consent[.]” Id.

Court of Appeals of Indiana | Memorandum Decision 20A-AD-994 | October 26, 2020 Page 7 of 8 [15] However, the right and responsibility to determine public policies, and to adopt,

improve, refine, and perfect legislation directed thereto, falls to the legislature,

not the courts. Parsley v. MGA Fam. Grp., Inc., 103 N.E.3d 651, 657 (Ind. Ct.

App. 2018). Our role is to construe the statutes and apply enactments so as to

carry out legislative intent. See id. And, here, the Indiana legislature has

provided that a biological mother may execute a consent to an adoption “at any

time after the birth of the child[.]” Ind. Code § 31-19-9-2(a) (2020). Regardless

of the wisdom of that policy, it is clear that we have neither the responsibility

nor the authority to add a waiting period to the statute where none exists. As

such, we decline Mother’s request for us to require a waiting period before a

mother may sign a consent to an adoption.

[16] In sum, we affirm the trial court’s judicial acknowledgment accepting Mother’s

consent to the adoption of Child.

[17] Affirmed.

Bradford, C.J., and Mathias, J., concur.

Court of Appeals of Indiana | Memorandum Decision 20A-AD-994 | October 26, 2020 Page 8 of 8