Sacramento County Department of Health & Human Services v. Joseph A.

The Indian Child Welfare Act of 1978 ( 25 U.S.C. § 1901 et seq.) (ICWA) establishes minimum federal standards a state court must follow when removing an Indian child from his or her family. Congress has defined “Indian child” for these purposes as “any unmarried person who is under age eighteen and is either (a) a member of an Indian tribe or (b) is eligible for membership in an Indian tribe and is the biological child of a member of an Indian tribe.” (Id., § 1903(4).)

We granted review to consider whether two state court rules adopted to implement ICWA are valid. When a child is eligible for tribal membership but is not an Indian child as defined in ICWA, rule 5.482(c) of the California Rules of Court requires the juvenile court to “proceed as if the child is an Indian child” and to take steps “to secure tribal membership for the child.” (Ibid.) We conclude rule 5.482(c) is invalid because it conflicts with the Legislature’s intent to enforce ICWA by codifying its provisions, including the federal definition of Indian child (see Welf. & Inst. Code, §§ 224-224.6; id., § 224.1, subd. (a); 25 U.S.C. § 1903 (4)), thus leaving cases not involving Indian children subject to…