V.M. v. Department of Children & Family Services

SILBERMAN, Judge.

V.M., the Father, appeals a final judgment terminating his parental rights with respect to his children, C.M. and E.M.1 The trial court entered the final judgment after finding that the Father’s failure to timely appear at the adjudicatory hearing constituted his consent to termination. The Department of Children and Family Services (the Department) and the Guardian ad Litem (GAL) concede that the trial court committed reversible error by finding that the Father’s failure to appear constituted his consent to termination and by failing to grant a continuance. We agree and…