State, Dept. of Health & Social Services, Office of Children's Services v. Michelle P

CARNEY, Justice.

I. INTRODUCTION

A court must have jurisdiction to rule on a case. The superior court dismissed a Child in Need of Aid (CINA) petition because it believed it no longer had jurisdiction over the case after the disposition order granting the Office of Children's Services (OCS) custody of the child had expired. We hold that jurisdiction over a CINA case is distinct from the grant of custody or supervision to OCS in a disposition order and that it derives from the child's status as a child in need of aid. We therefore reverse the superior court's order dismissing the petition and…