Lawyers at CYS also must gather the evidence they need under state law to terminate rights. This may include proof that the parent has failed to visit or support a child in any way for six months or that parents have made no progress toward renting an apartment or getting off drugs. In Allegheny County, it typically takes three to six months after the goal is changed to adoption for the termination petition to be filed. If parents don't go to the termination hearing, their rights are almost always severed that day, and in some cases, the children are adopted by their foster parents immediately after that hearing. If the birth parents do attend, the hearing is postponed, often for another two to three months because time must be found on busy judges' schedules for a lengthy hearing.
Judges often issue termination decisions within a week after the hearing.
Less frequently, they'll ask the attorneys to write briefs supporting their positions. That may take months because they'll need a transcript of the hearing. If the parents want to appeal a termination, they must tell the judge within 10 days what they believe is wrong with the decision. Then, within 20 days after that, they must file an appeal before Superior Court. It can take a year for Superior Court to decide these appeals.