Justice Administrative Commission v. Harp

The Justice Administrative Commission (JAC) seeks certiorari review of an order requiring it to pay the attorney’s fees of a mother’s court-appointed private counsel in a termination of parental rights proceeding. Because the mother executed a voluntary written surrender of her parental rights pursuant to section 39.806(l)(a), Florida Statutes (2008), before the termination proceedings were initiated, she was not entitled to publicly-funded counsel. Consequently, the order appointing counsel, and more specifically, the order requiring the JAC to pay appointed counsel, was error. As a result,…