N.M. R. Child. Ct. 10-360

As amended through November 1, 2024

Rule 10-360 - Discharge hearing

A.Discharge hearing. The last review or permanency hearing held before the child's eighteenth birthday shall be a discharge hearing.

B.Notice. The department shall be responsible for obtaining a setting for the discharge hearing and shall give notice of the discharge hearing to all other parties and any other persons as required by law.

C.Conduct of hearing and required findings. At the discharge hearing, the court shall

(1) review the transition plan;

(2) determine whether the department has made reasonable efforts to

(a) provide written information concerning the child's family history and the whereabouts of any sibling, if appropriate;

(b) provide education and health records to the child;

(c) provide the child's social security card, certified birth certificate, state-issued identification card, death certificate of a parent, proof of citizenship or residence, and official documentation that the child was in foster care to the child;

(d) assist the child in obtaining Medicaid if the child is eligible; and

(e) refer the child for a guardianship or limited guardianship if the child is incapacitated; and

(3) make a finding of whether the child has decided to participate in the fostering connections program and whether the child has been provided an opportunity to develop a voluntary services and support agreement.

D.Continued jurisdiction past the child's eighteenth birthday. If the court finds that the department has not made reasonable efforts to meet all the requirements of Paragraph (C)(2) of this rule and that termination of jurisdiction would be harmful to the child, the court may continue to exercise its jurisdiction in the abuse or neglect case for a period not to exceed one (1) year from the child's eighteenth birthday, as long as the child consents to the court's continued jurisdiction. The court may dismiss the case at any time after the child's eighteenth birthday for good cause.

[Provisionally adopted by Supreme Court Order No. 21-8300-006, effective November 12, 2021; provisionally adopted rule approved by Supreme Court Order No. 22-8300-017, effective for all cases pending or filed on or after December 31, 2022.]

N.M. R. Child. Ct. 10-360

Provisionally adopted by Supreme Court Order No. 21-8300-007, effective 11/12/2021; provisionally adopted commentary approved as amended by Supreme Court Order No. 22-8300-017, effective for all cases pending or filed on or after December 31, 2022.

Committee commentary. - This rule uses "child" throughout to mirror statutory language, but the Committee recognizes that this rule impacts youth, those older children who are closer to the age of eighteen (18).

This rule implements hearing requirements for youth imposed by the Abuse and Neglect Act and by the Fostering Connections Act, Articles 4 and 26 of the Children's Code, respectively. Paragraph D addresses the continued jurisdiction of the children's court over an abuse and neglect case involving a youth who has reached the age of eighteen (18) only when the department has failed to make reasonable efforts to provide the information, documents, and assistance required by NMSA 1978, Section 32A-4-25.3 (2009) and 8.10.9.17 NMAC.

Paragraph D of this rule does not address the jurisdiction or procedures of the Fostering Connections Act for eligible adults beyond the age of eighteen (18). See Article 8 of the Children's Court Rules and Forms; see generally NMSA 1978, §§ 32A-26-1 to -12 (2020, as amended through 2021).

For Indian children under the Indian Child Welfare Act ("ICWA"), 25 U.S.C. §§ 1901-1963 , in addition to the information listed in Paragraph (C)(2), it is best practice to provide the Indian child's tribal membership documents, contact information for the tribe and the ICWA worker, the child's clan relationships, and the child's genogram or ancestry chart.