Minor Children v. Ark. Dep't of Human Servs.

This is a clarion call to any attorney who practices dependency-neglect law. To ignore the majority opinion herein may well cause your client to effectively forfeit his or her right of appeal. The narrow issue that has devolved in this case sua sponte is which appellate rules apply to a permanency-planning order where the disposition is permanent custody of the minor: Arkansas Supreme Court Rule 6-9 or Ark. R. App. P.-Civ. 2(d) and 4(a). This is a particularly devastating trap for the unwary.

In this case the order being appealed is a permanency-planning order awarding permanent custody to…