Child Custody • CYF's Reasonable Efforts to Finalize Permanency Plan • Court-Ordered Family Therapy

In the Interest of: C.K., a Minor, PICS Case No. 17-0955 (Pa. Super. June 5, 2017) Strassburger, J. (21 pages).

CYF failed to make reasonable efforts at facilitating permanency plan of reunification where court ordered family trauma therapy and CYF failed to adequately communicate the purpose of the court-ordered therapy to its contracted provider such that children's progress was delayed to due assignment to therapy unqualified to address family's needs. Order of the trial court affirmed.

Allegheny County Office of Children, Youth and Families appealed from the order of the trial court that determined CYF did not make reasonable efforts to finalize the permanency plan for minor children N.L. and C.K. K.C. was the mother of both children and J.K.-T. was the father of C.K. The trial court had adjudicated children dependent and ordered them removed from mother's custody, and highlighted mother's experience of domestic violence and children's exposure to same as primary issues to be resolved. Children's permanency goal was reunification with parent with a concurrent goal of adoption.