In a 2011 case, D.M. v. D.R. (No. 2010-IA-01217-SCT; Mississippi Supreme Court, March 31, 2011), the Mississippi Supreme Court heard arguments from a mother who gave up her parental rights to her parents, who officially adopted their grandson. When they passed away, the mother tried to again assert custody over her son. However, her son’s paternal grandparents also asked the Court for custody.
The main question in the Court’s opinion was abandonment. Parental rights of fit parents are very rarely interfered with. However, a parent who abandons the child essentially forfeits his or her rights. In this case, the Court considered their own legal definition of abandonment as any single decision or course of conduct that reflects a “settled purpose to forego all duties and relinquish all parental claims.”
In this case, Mother gave up all rights to her child when she agreed to the adoption by her parents. Normally, adoptions are final.
Mother argued against asking, “Did her rights terminate?” Instead, Mother suggested that the Court should look at the circumstances, such as, “Who did Mother give up her rights to?” In most cases that might not matter, but here it is clear that Mother agreed to give up her rights to her parents and might not have been willing to give them up to anyone else.
The Court was very sympathetic to this argument, but would not overlook the fact that Mother gave up her rights. The end result?
Mother stands in the position of sister to her child and may motion the Court for custody. This puts her in a similar position as the paternal grandparents and the Court will have to hear evidence for the best interests of the child.
