In re D.P. CA2/5

DISCUSSION

“A case becomes moot when events ‘ “render[ ] it impossible for [a] court, if it should decide the case in favor of plaintiff, to grant him any effect[ive] relief.” ’ [Citation.] For relief to be ‘effective,’ two requirements must be met. First, the plaintiff must complain of an ongoing harm. Second, the harm must be redressable or capable of being rectified by the outcome the plaintiff seeks. [Citation.]” (In re D.P. (2023) 14 Cal.5th 266, 276.) “Even when a case is moot, courts may exercise their ‘inherent discretion’ to reach the merits of the dispute.” (Id. at p. 282.) Although “no single factor is necessarily dispositive of whether a court should exercise discretionary review of a moot appeal,” (id. at p. 286) appellate courts often reach the merits when a juvenile court’s jurisdictional findings could have consequences for the appellant beyond jurisdiction, or when a challenged finding “is based on particularly pernicious or stigmatizing conduct.” (Id. at pp. 285–286.) On April 1, 2025, we provided the parties an opportunity to address whether we should take judicial notice of the court’s February 2025 orders terminating jurisdiction and placing minors under…