In Re XV

Kathleen Mallinger, under appointment by the Court of Appeal, for Minors.

McCONNELL, P.J.

In Dwayne P. v. Superior Court (2002) 103 Cal.App.4th 247, 251 , 126 Cal.Rptr.2d 639 ( Dwayne P. ), this court held in a first review pertaining to notice under the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) ( 25 U.S.C. § 1901 et seq.) that the parents' failure to object at the juvenile court did not constitute waiver or otherwise preclude appellate review. We relied on the court's continuing sua sponte duty throughout dependency proceedings to ensure the requisite notice is given and the protections the ICWA affords Indian tribes and Indian children. In a previous appeal in this case, in accordance with Dwayne P., we conditionally reversed a judgment terminating the parental rights of Anthony V. and Nancy D. to their daughter, X.V., and remanded the matter to the juvenile court for the limited purpose of complying with ICWA notice requirements. ( In re X.V., 2004 WL 2189583 (Sept. 30, 2004, D044169) [nonpub. opn.].)

The principal question here is whether the parents—despite their failure to raise any objection at the special hearing on remand devoted to the adequacy of ICWA notices to the Bureau of…