Title 31, FAMILY LAW AND JUVENILE LAW

Sec. 10. (a) Not more than five (5) days after a petition for adoption has been filed, the clerk of the court shall notify the court of the filing. (b) Upon receiving notice under subsection (a) that a petition for adoption has been filed, the court shall promptly: (1) examine th…

Sec. 11. If the judge of the court dies, is disabled, or is absent, the clerk of the court shall examine the petition for adoption and the petition for adoption shall be acted upon accordingly. [Pre-1997 Recodification Citation: 31-3-1-4(b) part.] As added by P.L.1-1997, SEC.11.…

Sec. 12. As soon as a petition for adoption is found to be in proper form, the clerk of the court shall forward one (1) copy of the petition for adoption to a licensed child placing agency as described in IC 31-9-2.1-46, with preference to be given to the agency, if any, sponsori…

Sec. 13. (a) Except for a child who is under the care and supervision of the department, a petitioner for adoption may file a separate, ex parte, verified petition requesting temporary custody of a child sought to be adopted at the time of or any time after the filing of a petiti…

Sec. 14. (a) If a petition for adoption and a paternity action are pending at the same time for a child sought to be adopted, the court in which the petition for adoption has been filed has exclusive jurisdiction over the child, and the paternity proceeding must be consolidated w…

Sec. 15. (a) When the licensed child placing agency or local office that will conduct the inspection and supervision required under IC 31-19-7-1 and submit the report required under IC 31-19-8-5 has been determined, the licensed child placing agency or local office shall provide …

Sec. 16. (a) The circuit or superior court exercising jurisdiction over an adoption proceeding in any of the following counties shall establish a guardian ad litem pilot program to appoint a guardian ad litem to represent the interests of an incapacitated parent: (1) LaPorte Coun…

Sec. 2. (a) Except as provided in subsection (b), an individual who seeks to adopt a child less than eighteen (18) years of age must, by attorney of record, file a petition for adoption with the clerk of the court having probate jurisdiction in the county in which: (1) the petiti…

Sec. 4. (a) Except as provided in subsection (b), a petition for adoption by a married person may not be granted unless the husband and wife join in the action. (b) If the petitioner for adoption is married to the: (1) biological; or (2) adoptive; father or mother of the child, j…

Sec. 5. (a) Except as provided in subsection (b), a petition for adoption must be filed in triplicate. (b) If a petition for adoption is sponsored by a licensed child placing agency, the petition for adoption must be filed in quadruplicate. (c) The original copy of a petition for…

Sec. 6. (a) A petition for adoption must specify the following: (1) The: (A) name if known; (B) sex, race, and age if known, or if unknown, the approximate age; and (C) place of birth; of the child sought to be adopted. (2) The new name to be given the child if a change of name i…

Sec. 7. (a) Except as provided in subsection (e), a medical report of the health status and medical history of the child sought to be adopted and the child's birth parents must: (1) accompany a petition for adoption; or (2) be filed not later than sixty (60) days after the filing…

Sec. 7.2. (a) A licensed child placing agency may not: (1) require, as a condition for obtaining an adoption, that an individual or a member of the individual's household receive an immunization; or (2) discriminate against an individual with respect to: (A) the immunization stat…

Sec. 7.3. A court may not waive any criminal history check requirements set forth in this chapter. As added by P.L.138-2007, SEC.36.

Sec. 7.5. (a) This section does not apply to a petitioner for adoption who provides the licensed child placing agency or the local office with the results of a criminal history check conducted: (1) in accordance with IC 31-9-2.1-58; and (2) not more than one (1) year before the d…

Sec. 7.6. If a petitioner for adoption is charged with: (1) a felony; or (2) a misdemeanor relating to the health and safety of children; during the pendency of the adoption, the petitioner shall notify the court of the criminal charge in writing. As added by P.L.200-1999, SEC.8.…

Sec. 8. Unless the petitioner for adoption seeks under section 1 of this chapter to adopt a person who is at least eighteen (18) years of age, the petitioner for adoption must attach to the petition for adoption: (1) an adoption history fee of twenty dollars ($20) payable to the …

Sec. 9. Fees collected under section 8 of this chapter shall be deposited in the adoption history fund established by IC 31-19-18-6. [Pre-1997 Recodification Citation: 31-3-1-2(a) part.] As added by P.L.1-1997, SEC.11.

Sec. 1. The definitions in this chapter apply throughout this article. As added by P.L.138-2007, SEC.45.

Sec. 10. "Issuing court" means the court that makes a child custody determination for which enforcement is sought under this article. As added by P.L.138-2007, SEC.45.

Sec. 11. "Issuing state" means the state in which a child custody determination is made. As added by P.L.138-2007, SEC.45.

Sec. 12. "Modification" means a child custody determination that changes, replaces, supersedes, or is otherwise made after a previous determination concerning the same child, regardless of whether the determination is made by the court that made the previous determination. As add…

Sec. 13. "Person" means an individual, a corporation, a business trust, an estate, a trust, a partnership, a limited liability company, an association, a joint venture, a government, a governmental subdivision, an agency or instrumentality, a public corporation, or any other lega…

Sec. 14. "Person acting as a parent" means a person, other than a parent, who: (1) has physical custody of the child or has had physical custody for a period of at least six (6) consecutive months, including a temporary absence, within one (1) year immediately before the commence…

Sec. 15. "Petitioner" means a person who seeks enforcement of: (1) an order for return of a child under the Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction; or (2) a child custody determination. As added by P.L.138-2007, SEC.45.

Sec. 16. "Physical custody" means the physical care and supervision of a child. As added by P.L.138-2007, SEC.45.

Sec. 17. "Record" means information that is: (1) inscribed on a tangible medium; or (2) stored in an electronic or other medium; and that is retrievable in a perceivable form. As added by P.L.138-2007, SEC.45.

Sec. 18. "Respondent" means a person against whom a proceeding has been commenced for enforcement of: (1) an order for return of a child under the Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction; or (2) a child custody determination. As added by P.L.138-200…

Sec. 19. "State" means a state of the United States, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the United States Virgin Islands, or a territory or an insular possession subject to the jurisdiction of the United States. As added by P.L.138-2007, SEC.45.

Sec. 2. "Abandoned" means left without provision for reasonable and necessary care or supervision. As added by P.L.138-2007, SEC.45.

Sec. 20. "Tribe" means an Indian tribe or band or Alaskan Native village that is: (1) recognized by federal law; or (2) formally acknowledged by a state. As added by P.L.138-2007, SEC.45.

Sec. 21. "Warrant" means an order issued by a court authorizing law enforcement officers to take physical custody of a child. As added by P.L.138-2007, SEC.45.

Sec. 3. "Child" means a person who is less than eighteen (18) years of age. As added by P.L.138-2007, SEC.45.

Sec. 4. (a) "Child custody determination" means a judgment, decree, or other court order providing for: (1) legal custody; (2) physical custody; or (3) visitation; with respect to a child. (b) The term does not include an order relating to child support or other monetary obligati…

Sec. 5. (a) "Child custody proceeding" means a proceeding in which legal custody, physical custody, or visitation with respect to a child is an issue. The term includes a proceeding for: (1) dissolution of marriage or legal separation; (2) child abuse or neglect; (3) guardianship…

Sec. 6. "Commencement" means the filing of the first pleading in a proceeding. As added by P.L.138-2007, SEC.45.

Sec. 7. "Court" means an entity authorized by state law to establish, enforce, or modify a child custody determination. As added by P.L.138-2007, SEC.45.

Sec. 8. "Home state" means the state in which a child lived with: (1) a parent; or (2) a person acting as a parent; for at least six (6) consecutive months immediately before the commencement of a child custody proceeding. In the case of a child less than six (6) months of age, t…

Sec. 9. "Initial determination" means the first child custody determination concerning a child. As added by P.L.138-2007, SEC.45.

Sec. 1. As used in this article, "department" refers to the department of child services established by IC 31-25-1-1. As added by P.L.145-2006, SEC.271.

Sec. 10. (a) This section applies after June 30, 2008. (b) The department of child services: (1) must have sufficient qualified and trained staff to: (A) fulfill the purpose of this article; (B) comply with the maximum caseload ratios for: (i) family case managers; and (ii) child…

Sec. 11. (a) Except in cases involving a child who may be a victim of institutional abuse or cases in which police investigation also appears appropriate, the department is the primary public agency responsible for: (1) receiving; (2) assessing or arranging for assessment of; and…

Sec. 11.1. Subject to IC 31-33-8-7, the department shall have direct in-person contact with an alleged victim of child abuse or neglect not more than thirty (30) days before the department: (1) concludes an assessment under IC 31-33; or (2) dismisses or terminates a child in need…

Sec. 11.5. (a) For purposes of an administrative proceeding regarding an action taken by the department, the director or the director's designee is the ultimate authority of the department. (b) A designee of the director under subsection (a) must be: (1) a deputy director of the …

Sec. 12. The department shall give notice of the existence and location of photographs, x-rays, and physical medical examination reports to: (1) the appropriate prosecuting attorney; and (2) the appropriate law enforcement agency, if the law enforcement agency has not already rec…

Sec. 13. Photographs, x-rays, or physical medical examination reports shall be made available to: (1) the law enforcement agency having jurisdiction; (2) the department; (3) the prosecuting attorney; (4) the guardian ad litem; or (5) the court appointed special advocate appointed…