For Inquiring Minds, Relatives Don’t Have to Be Parties to Receive Custody

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D.S. v. Pike County DHR, CL-2022-1192 (Ala. Civ. App June 9, 2023), an opinion written by Judge Fridy, the Court held that in view of Ala. Code § 12-15-314, nothing requires a juvenile court to make a relative a party to an action before transferring custody to the relative.

Here is the relevant portion of Ala. Code § 12-15-314

(a) If a child is found to be dependent, the juvenile court may make any of the following orders of disposition to protect the welfare of the child:
…
(3) Transfer legal custody to any of the following:
…
c. A relative or other individual who, after study by the Department of Human Resources, is found by the juvenile court to be qualified to receive and care for the child..
And for the record, the same section of the same statutes also says “other individual.” Both “relative” and “other individual” have the same prerequisites to receive custody of a child: DHR completes a study and the court finds them qualified.