Opinion ID: 2586621
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: D & N Proceedings

Text: Unlike the constitutional right to counsel at issue in Anders, a parent's rights to counsel and an appeal in D & N proceedings are statutory in nature. See C.S. v. People, 83 P.3d 627, 636 (Colo.2004) (A parent's right to appointed counsel in termination proceedings is secured by statute.... (citing § 19-1-105 and § 19-3-202(1))); People ex rel. A.E., 994 P.2d 465, 466 (Colo.App.1999) (parents have a right to an immediate appeal of an order terminating their parental rights (citing § 19-1-109(2)(b), C.R.S. (2009))). However, as with the criminal proceedings at issue in Anders, 386 U.S. at 744, 87 S.Ct. 1396, termination proceedings cue constitutional due process concerns. See Santosky v. Kramer, 455 U.S. 745, 753-54, 102 S.Ct. 1388, 71 L.Ed.2d 599 (1982) (When the State moves to destroy weakened familial bonds, it must provide the parents with fundamentally fair procedures.); People ex rel. M.B., 70 P.3d 618, 622 (Colo.App. 2003) (Termination of the parent-child legal relationship is a drastic remedy and a parent is entitled to procedural due process before termination occurs.). Furthermore, once an indigent litigant has been appointed counsel, we refer to our constitutional jurisprudence to determine the scope of the obligation borne by the appointed attorney. See, e.g., Breaman, 939 P.2d at 1351 (stating that, even where a defendant did not have a right to appointed counsel, [h]aving made the decision to appoint such counsel ... the district court was not entitled to deny [the defendant] effective representation of that counsel). Thus, the obligation of court-appointed attorneys to advocate for indigent parents in termination proceedings is no different than the obligation imposed on counsel appointed to represent criminal defendants on appeal. Furthermore, proceedings for the termination of parental rights implicate a number of important interests, including the interests of the parent and child in a continuing family relationship; the interests of the parent in preserving the integrity and privacy of the family unit; [and] the interest of the child in a permanent, secure, stable, and loving environment. People ex rel. C.A.K., 652 P.2d 603, 607 (Colo.1982). Extending a parent facing such proceedings the rights to counsel and an appeal demonstrates a decision that, so abhorrent to our notions of justice is the possibility of wrongfully terminating a parent's rights, the parent must be able to seek meaningful review of the order, whatever the specific circumstances of his case. Therefore, pursuit of such an appeal with the guaranteed aid of court-appointed counselserves an important function and cannot be said to be wholly frivolous for lack of merit alone. The parties and amici also underscore the interests of the child in obtaining a swift and final resolution in termination proceedings and suggest that an Anders -style, no-merits briefing procedure better fits with the mandate that these matters be quickly resolved. See, e.g., § 19-1-102(1)(c), C.R.S. (2009) (directing courts to proceed with all possible speed to a legal determination). We are not persuaded. The procedure outlined in Anders does little for judicial economy. To properly consider an appointed appellate attorney's motion to withdraw, an appellate court must both thoroughly review the record in order to ensure counsel has not missed any appealable issues and considerat least to some extentthe merits of any issues the court identifies in the record or that the attorney has identified in her briefs. See McCoy, 486 U.S. at 442, 108 S.Ct. 1895; see also Penson v. Ohio, 488 U.S. 75, 83, 109 S.Ct. 346, 102 L.Ed.2d 300 (1988) (concluding the state court erred when it failed to appoint new counsel after determining the record supported several arguable claims (citing Anders, 386 U.S. at 744, 87 S.Ct. 1396; McCoy, 486 U.S. at 444, 108 S.Ct. 1895)). Such a searching review that requires appellate courts to play the roles of both advocate and tribunal cannot be considered the swifter path to resolution of the issues. See State v. McKenney, 98 Idaho 551, 568 P.2d 1213, 1214 (Idaho 1977) ([L]ess of counsel and the judiciary's time and energy will be expended in directly considering the merits of the case in its regular and due course as contrasted with a fragmented consideration of various motions, the consideration of which necessarily involves a determination of merits.). Moreover, termination proceedings must be just in addition to being swiftly executed. See § 19-1-102(1)(b) (directing the preservation of family ties wherever possible); People ex rel. M.B., 70 P.3d 618, 622 (Colo.App. 2003). Full appellate reviewrather than some substitute thereforebetter protects a parent's rights, thereby bolstering the integrity and stability of the final termination order, and is consistent with protecting the child's interest in permanency. As such, we conclude that an appointed lawyer for an indigent parent during D & N proceedings cannot withdraw solely because she determines the appeal to be without merit. [7] Rather, an appointed appellate lawyer who reasonably concludes a parent's appeal is without merit must nonetheless file petitions on appeal in accordance with C.A.R. 3.4, which requires that petitions on appeal from D & N proceedings include, inter alia, a statement of the nature of the case, concise statements of the facts and legal issues presented on appeal, and a description and application of pertinent sources of law. See C.A.R. 3.4(g)(3). The legal issues presented in the brief can be either those identified and developed by the attorney, or, if she can find none, those points the parent wants argued. The petition in such instances, though perhaps wholly unpersuasive, is not wholly frivolous. In so doing, even where the parent's attorney concludes the appeal is meritless, she abides by her dual obligations to her client and to the court, and remains an advocate in fact as well as in name. In Colorado, Anders briefs are inappropriate and unnecessary in the context of D & N proceedings, just as in criminal appeals. Appellate review of a parent's best arguments however weakmade with the assistance of counsel best protects the parent's rights, supports the child's interests in permanency and finality, and avoids the injection of unnecessary confusion and delay into the reviewing process.