Los Angeles County Department of Children & Family Services v. Richard C.

Presently pending before this court is the appeal of Richard and Pamela C. from an order terminating their parental rights pursuant to Welfare and Institutions Code section 366.26, subdivision (b)(1) 1 over their daughter Mary C., bom September 30, 1992. The trial court, *74 acting pursuant to section 317, subdivision (c), appointed counsel to represent the minor. 2 Counsel appointed by the trial court has asked us to consider appointing an attorney to represent the minor on appeal. We have permitted the parties as well as counsel who represented the minor in the trial court to brief the question of whether an attorney should be appointed to separately represent the child. After due consideration of the views presented, we conclude counsel for the Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) should represent the minor’s interests in her parent’s appeal from the parental rights termination order. The motion to appoint separate counsel for the minor is denied.

Dependency proceedings were commenced as to the parents, Pamela and Richard C., on October 6, 1992. The minor was a newborn infant when the petition was filed pursuant to section 300, having…