The Florida Senate

39.40  Procedures and jurisdiction.--

(1)  All procedures, including petitions, pleadings, subpoenas, summonses, and hearings, in dependency cases shall be according to the Florida Rules of Juvenile Procedure unless otherwise provided by law. Parents must be informed by the court of their right to counsel in dependency proceedings at each stage of the dependency proceedings. Parents who are unable to afford counsel and who are threatened with criminal charges based on the facts underlying the dependency petition or a permanent loss of custody of their children must be appointed counsel.

(2)  The circuit court shall have exclusive original jurisdiction of all proceedings under ¹parts III, IV, V, and VI of this chapter, of a child voluntarily placed with a licensed child-caring agency, a licensed child-placing agency, or the department. Jurisdiction attaches when the initial shelter petition, dependency petition, or termination petition is filed or when a child is taken into the custody of the department. The circuit court may assume jurisdiction over any such proceeding regardless of whether the child was in the physical custody of both parents, was in the sole legal or physical custody of only one parent or of some other person, or was in the physical or legal custody of no person when the event or condition occurred that brought the child to the attention of the court. When the jurisdiction of any child who has been found to be dependent is obtained, the court shall retain jurisdiction, unless relinquished by its order, until the child reaches 18 years of age.

(3)  The court shall expedite the resolution of the placement issue in cases involving a child under 4 years of age when the child has been removed from the family and placed in a shelter.

(4)  The court shall expedite the judicial handling of all cases when the child has been removed from the family and placed in a shelter, and of all cases involving a child under 4 years of age.

(5)  It is the intent of the Legislature that children removed from their homes be provided equal treatment with respect to goals, objectives, services, and case plans, without regard to the location of their placement, and that placement shall be in a safe environment where drugs and alcohol are not abused. It is the further intent of the Legislature that, when children are removed from their homes, disruption to their education be minimized to the extent possible.

History.--s. 20, ch. 78-414; s. 5, ch. 84-311; s. 4, ch. 87-289; s. 4, ch. 90-306; s. 2, ch. 92-158; s. 3, ch. 94-164; s. 5, ch. 95-228.

¹Note.--Part III of this chapter, this part, was redesignated as part II to conform to the repeal or transfer to other chapters of the provisions of former part II by ch. 97-238. The provisions formerly contained in part IV of this chapter were repealed or transferred to ch. 984 by ch. 97-238. Parts V and VI of this chapter were redesignated as parts III and IV to conform to repeal or transfer of provisions of former parts II and IV by ch. 97-238.