In Re Pierce

ORR, Justice.

The New Hanover County Department of Social Services, petitioner, appeals from a Court of Appeals decision concluding that Dawn A. Cole, respondent, had made reasonable progress in correcting the conditions that led to the removal of her minor child from the family home. We affirm.

This appeal arises out of a dispute between DSS and Ms. Cole over the custody of Ms. Cole’s daughter, Kristina Taylor Lindsay Pierce. At the time of her birth, on 28 June 1997, Kristina tested positive for cocaine. As a result, she was initially placed in the care of her paternal grandmother, Linda…