PART VI. TERMINATION OF PARENTAL RIGHTS
§571-61 Termination of parental rights; petition. (a) Relinquishment. The parents or either parent or the surviving parent who desire to relinquish parental rights to any natural or adopted child and thus make the child available for adoption or readoption, may petition the family court of the circuit in which the parents or parent resides, or of the circuit in which the child resides, or was born, for the entry of a judgment of termination of parental rights. The petition shall be verified and shall be substantially in a form as may be prescribed by the judge or senior judge of the family court. The petition may be filed at any time following the birthing parent's sixth month of pregnancy; provided that no judgment may be entered upon a petition concerning an unborn child until after the birth of the child and in respect to a legal parent or parents until the petitioner or petitioners have filed in the termination proceeding a written reaffirmation of their desires as expressed in the petition or in respect to a legal parent or parents until the petitioner or petitioners have been given no less than ten days' notice of a proposal for the entry of judgment and an opportunity to be heard in connection with the proposal.
(b) Involuntary termination.
The authority provided under this section may be exercised under this chapter only when a verified petition, substantially in the form prescribed above, has been filed by some responsible adult person on behalf of the child in the family court of the circuit in which the parent resides or the child resides or was born, and the court has conducted a hearing of the petition.
If the birthing parent of the child files with the petition an affidavit representing that the identity or whereabouts of the child's non-birthing parent is unknown to or not ascertainable by the birthing parent or that other good cause exists why notice cannot or should not be given to the non-birthing parent, the court shall conduct a hearing to determine whether notice is required.
If the court finds that good cause exists why notice cannot or should not be given to the child's non-birthing parent, and that the non-birthing parent is neither the legal nor adjudicated nor presumed non-birthing parent of the child, nor has the non-birthing parent demonstrated a reasonable degree of interest, concern, or responsibility as to the existence or welfare of the child, the court may enter an order authorizing the termination of the non-birthing parent's parental rights and the subsequent adoption of the child without notice to the non-birthing parent. [L 1965, c 232, pt of §1; Supp, §333-29; HRS §571-61; am L 1970, c 205, §2; am L 1971, c 46, §1; am L 1973, c 211, §1(h); am L 1974, c 74, §1; am L 1976, c 85, §14; am L 1980, c 55, §1; am L 1982, c 49, §1; am L 1983, c 171, §4; am L 1993, c 160, §2; am L 2011, c 220, §17; am L 2013, c 253, §3; am L 2016, c 213, §2; am L 2023, c 160, §2]