In Re the Adoption of C.J.L.

¶1 Two would-be adoptive parents (Appellants) petitioned the Montana Twelfth Judicial District Court in Hill County to terminate the parental rights of C.J.L.’s natural mother and adopt C.J.L. The District Court determined it lacked “venue jurisdiction” and dismissed the petition. Appellants timely appealed. We reverse and remand.

ISSUE

¶2 The issue on appeal is: Did the District Court err as a matter of law in dismissing the petition for lack of “venue jurisdiction”?

BACKGROUND

¶3 C.J.L. was born in Havre, Montana, in 2015. Shortly after C.J.L.’s birth, C.J.L.’s mother signed an affidavit…