David B. v. Superior Court

Petitioner David B. seeks a writ to require respondent court to set aside a judgment terminating his parental rights on the ground that he lacked notice. As explained below, we hold that a juvenile court in dependency proceedings has no power to vacate orders on the ground of lack of personal jurisdiction after an order terminating parental rights has become final in that court and we uphold as constitutional the statutory scheme which imposes this limitation on the trial court.

Facts—Procedural Background

On May 24, 1991, the department of social services (DSS) filed a dependency petition on behalf of the minor, M.B., born on April 27, 1991. In support of the petition, the social worker reported that the mother, Michelle, had dropped the minor off at a sitter’s on May 21, 1991, and did not return. The sitter called the police the next day and the minor was taken to a shelter. When the social worker talked to the sitter on May 23, the mother was there and the social worker set up an appointment for the next day to discuss the situation. The mother did not keep the appointment and the social worker could not locate her. The worker also reported that he had no information…