Los Angeles County Department of Children & Family Services v. Marcus M.

Opinion

KENNARD, J.

In a dependency case (Welf. & Inst. Code, § 300 et seq.), the juvenile court may terminate a parent’s interest in a child’s companionship, care, and custody after the child has been removed from the parent’s home, efforts to reunify the family have failed, and adoption has been identified as the permanent placement goal. (Id., § 366.26, subd. (b)(1); see In re Celine R. (2003) 31 Cal.4th 45, 52-53 [1 Cal.Rptr.3d 432, 71 P.3d 787].) Because a basic civil right of the parent is thus at stake (In re Marilyn H. (1993) 5 Cal.4th 295, 306 [19 Cal.Rptr.2d 544, 851 P.2d 826]),…