In re D.F. CA4/1

DISCUSSION

A. Legal Principles An “ ‘Indian child’ ” is “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.” (25 U.S.C. § 1903(4); see Welf. & Inst. Code,2 § 224.1, subd. (a) [adopting federal definition of “ ‘Indian child’ ”].) In dependency proceedings, the juvenile court and Agency have an “affirmative and continuing duty to inquire” whether a child “is or may be an Indian child.” (§ 224.2, subd. (a).) “This continuing duty can be divided into three phases: the initial duty to inquire, the duty of further inquiry, and the duty to provide formal ICWA notice.” (In re D.F. (2020) 55 Cal.App.5th 558, 566.)

All further statutory references are to the Welfare and Institutions Code unless otherwise noted.

3 At the first appearance by a parent in any dependency case, the juvenile court must “[a]sk each participant present whether the participant knows or has reason to know the child is an Indian child” and “[o]rder the parent, . . . to complete Parental Notification of Indian Status (form ICWA- 020).” (Cal. Rules of Court,3…