Opinion
SC 167045 COA 365664
06-14-2024
In re W. C. SURLINE, Minor.
St Clair CC Family Division: 21-000053-NA
Elizabeth T. Clement, Chief Justice, Brian K. Zahra, David F. Viviano, Richard H. Bernstein, Megan K. Cavanagh, Elizabeth M. Welch, Kyra H. Bolden, Justices
ORDER
On order of the Court, the application for leave to appeal the February 8, 2024 judgment of the Court of Appeals is considered. We DIRECT the petitioner Department of Health and Human Services to answer the application for leave to appeal within 28 days after the date of this order. In particular, the Department shall address whether the trial court erred in ordering it to file a petition to terminate parental rights notwithstanding the fact that the minor child had not been in foster care for 15 of the previous 22 months and was placed with relatives at the time. See MCL 712A.19a(8)(a).
We further invite the children's lawyer-guardian ad litem to answer the application for leave to appeal within the same time period.
The application for leave to appeal remains pending.