Opinion ID: 2075762
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Statutory Developments: Termination of Parental Rights

Text: Effective September 23, 1977, the Council of the District of Columbia in effect overruled C.A.P. by amending the law to permit termination of parent and child relationships in the best interests of the child, D.C.Code § 16-2353 (Supp. V 1978), wholly apart from an adoption proceeding (as then codified at D.C.Code § 16-301 to § 16-315 (1973 & Supp. IV 1977)). This statutory best interests test for termination proceedings, codified in the same section of the current D.C.Code, reflected the language of a considerable body of caselaw and paralleled the long-standing approach under not only the statutes governing dispositions of neglected children, see, e.g., D.C.Code § 16-2320(a) (1973), but also our local adoption statutes, see, e.g., D.C.Code § 16-203(c) (1951) (the change will be for the best interests of adoptee); id. § 16-309(b)(3) (1989) (the adoption will be for the best interests of the prospective adoptee). In contrast with the adoption statute, however, and even as amended, the termination statute continues to focus on the capabilities of the natural parent, thereby allowing that parent to defend against attacks on his or her capabilities wholly apart from, and not in comparison with, other custodians or potential adoptive parents.