Title
Title
Rules and Forms | Juvenile Law: Retention of Jurisdiction and Petitions Requesting Juvenile Case Files of Deceased Children (Action Required)
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Summary
Summary
To implement Assembly Bill 1756 (Stats. 2023, ch. 478, § 62) and Senate Bill 1161 (Stats. 2024, ch. 782, § 12), the Family and Juvenile Law Advisory Committee recommends (1) amending one rule of the California Rules of Court to comply with AB 1756’s amendment to Welfare and Institutions Code section 10850.4 to extend the juvenile court’s jurisdiction in cases involving the death of a child or nonminor dependent; (2) amending one rule of court to implement SB 1161’s amendment to the definition of a “juvenile case file” in Welfare and Institutions Code section 827(e); and (3) adopting one rule of court, amending two rules of court, adopting six mandatory forms, approving one optional form, and revising six forms to clarify the different legal standards for requesting any juvenile delinquency case file or a living child’s juvenile dependency case file versus a deceased child’s juvenile dependency case file under Welfare and Institutions Code section 827.
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Recommendation
Recommendation
The Family and Juvenile Law Advisory Committee recommends that the Judicial Council, effective January 1, 2026:
1. Adopt rule 5.551 of the California Rules of Court to implement SB 1161 by clarifying that the definition of a juvenile case file has the same meaning as defined in Welfare and Institutions Code section 827(e) and recognize the coextensive application of other confidentiality laws on the confidentiality of juvenile records codified in Welfare and Institutions Code section 827(a)(3);
2. Amend rule 5.510 of the California Rules of Court to implement AB 1756 by granting the juvenile court discretion to retain its jurisdiction in cases in which a child or nonminor dependent dies while under the juvenile court’s jurisdiction;
3. Amend rule 5.552 of the California Rules of Court to clarify that it applies only to requests for a juvenile delinquency case file or a living child’s juvenile dependency case file;
4. Amend rule 5.553 of the California Rules of Court to clarify that it applies only to requests for a deceased child’s juvenile dependency case file and to mirror the format in rule 5.552 for consistency;
5. Adopt six new mandatory forms:
• Proof of Service--Petition for Public Disclosure of a Deceased Child’s Juvenile Dependency Case File (form JV-583);
• Petition for Public Disclosure of a Deceased Child’s Juvenile Dependency Case File (form JV-584);
• Notice of Petition for Public Disclosure of a Deceased Child’s Juvenile Dependency Case File (form JV-585);
• Objection to Public Disclosure of a Deceased Child’s Juvenile Dependency Case File (form JV-586);
• Order on Petition for Public Disclosure of a Deceased Child’s Juvenile Dependency Case File (form JV-587);
• Order After Judicial Review on Petition for Public Disclosure of a Deceased Child’s Juvenile Dependency Case File (form JV-588);
6. Approve one new optional form, Order Granting Welfare and Institutions Code Section 827 Petition Attachment: Required Redactions
(form JV-576);
7. Revise Proof of Service--Petition for Access to Juvenile Case File
(form JV-569) to update its title to Proof of Service--Petition for Access to Juvenile Delinquency Case File or a Living Child’s Juvenile Dependency Case File, update all references to other retitled forms to reflect the proposed revisions to the form titles, and remove all references to requests for a juvenile dependency case file of a deceased child (for all forms in the series JV-569 through JV-574), add fields for petitioners to provide their contact information or the name and contact information of their lawyer in item 1, add the age qualification to items 2c and 4c, and add individuals protected by Welfare and Institutions Code section 827(a)(3) to items 2 and 4;
8. Revise Petition for Access to Juvenile Case File (form JV-570) to update its title to Petition for Access to Juvenile Delinquency Case File or a Living Child’s Juvenile Dependency Case File, add fields for petitioners to provide their contact information or the name and contact information of their lawyer in item 1, revise item 4 to remove subitem b and letter the boxes, add an option to attach additional information to items 5 and 7, and revise item 7 to include a juvenile delinquency case file or a living child’s juvenile dependency case file;
9. Revise Notice of Petition for Access to Juvenile Case File (form JV-571) to update its title to Notice of Petition for Access to Juvenile Delinquency Case File or a Living Child’s Juvenile Dependency Case File, revise the introductory paragraph to instruct petitioners on how to fill out the proof of service (form JV-569), and move the warning box above the signature line;
10. Revise Objection to Release of Juvenile Case File (form JV-572) to update its title to Objection to Release of Juvenile Delinquency Case File or a Living Child’s Juvenile Dependency Case File, add fields for petitioners to provide their contact information or the name and contact information of their lawyer in item 1, renumber the subsequent items accordingly, and add an option to attach additional information to item 5;
11. Revise Order on Petition for Access to Juvenile Case File (form JV-573) to update its title to Order on Petition for Access to Juvenile Delinquency Case File or a Living Child’s Juvenile Dependency Case File and revise item 2 to include a juvenile delinquency case file or a living child’s juvenile dependency case file; and
12. Revise Order After Judicial Review on Petition for Access to Juvenile Case File (form JV-574) to update its title to Order After Judicial Review on Petition for Access to Juvenile Delinquency Case File or a Living Child’s Juvenile Dependency Case File, revise items 2 and 3 to state, “After review of the juvenile delinquency case file or a living child’s juvenile dependency case file . . . ,” add a checkbox in item 3c for redaction of information that relates to another child or could identify another child who is not the subject of the petition, and remove items 4 and 5 pertaining to a deceased child and renumber items 6-9 as items 4-7;
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