Often, on the territory of the Russian Federation, parents, for one reason or another, are deprived of parental rights. Having stumbled once, many change their attitude towards life and children. If you want to restore your parental rights and live with your child, if you have been working towards this goal for a long time and are finally ready to realize it, we recommend that you do this with the legal support of Pravo Group!
Restoration of parental rights through the court
The Family Code directly states that restoration of parental rights may be possible through the court (Article 72 of the Family Code of the Russian Federation). The procedure for restoring parental rights consists of the following steps:
- First of all, it is necessary to prepare and collect all certificates and other papers confirming the ability of the father or mother to regain the rights to the child.
- After collecting documents, you need to prepare and file a claim in court.
- After filing a claim, you must wait until the court begins the procedure for the trial itself.
- After the court makes a decision, you must wait for such a decision to enter into legal force or appeal this decision if you disagree with it.
- If the court decision has entered into legal force, the parent has the right to return the child to himself, unless the court has established otherwise.
Return of lost parental rights in court
How to restore parental rights? Of course through the court! However, the law, based on the principles of humanism, in an effort to preserve the family, provides for the opportunity for persons who have lost parental rights to regain parental rights. Restoration of the mother's parental rights is possible after going to court and filing a corresponding application there. The duration and complexity of the procedure directly depends on why the person was deprived of parental rights.
If the child has not reached the age of majority, his deprived mother can restore maternal rights by filing a claim with the courts.
The law assigns the right to begin the process of restoring parental rights exclusively to the father and (or) mother - only they can demand the return of the child to the family and the return of the powers that previously belonged to them. Restoring parental rights is a legally complex process that can take a long time. You need to be prepared for this.
Russian family law takes into account the special significance of such trials and prescribes the indispensable participation in legal proceedings of representatives of the authorities responsible for guardianship and trusteeship in a particular municipality. If this requirement is not met, grounds may later arise to cancel an already adopted court decision, as a result of which it will be very difficult to restore parental rights. According to the code, the participation of a prosecutor in the process is also mandatory.
The location of the defendant (it can be either the child’s guardian or the guardianship and guardianship authority) when filing a claim is decisive in determining jurisdiction.
Statement of claim for restoration of parental rights
It is worth noting that the claim must be drawn up and filed with the court in accordance with Art. 131-132 of the Civil Procedure Code of the Russian Federation, which establish the rules for filing a statement of claim. A statement of claim must be filed for each party to the case. The parties to the case will be: the court, the prosecutor, as well as the guardianship authorities. Often the applicant has problems with how to draw up a claim, but a sample of such a claim can be obtained from the court as information. Also today, a sample claim can be found freely available on the Internet.
A claim in this category is subject to a state duty of 300 rubles. You can find out the payment details in the court or, for example, on the official website of the court.
An application for restoration of parental rights is submitted to the district court. The submission itself is carried out directly by the applicant. The time frame within which the court decides to begin proceedings in the case is 5 days. If the statement of claim is drawn up incorrectly, the court will refuse to accept such a statement. On the contrary, if the statement of claim is drawn up in the manner and in accordance with the rules of the law, and all legal conditions are met, the court will initiate a trial procedure.
In order for the claim to be accepted by the court, the statement of claim must contain a list of documents confirming that restoration of parental rights after their deprivation is possible. It is also desirable that the claim in its text contains direct references to a particular document.
Taking into account the interests of the child: supporting the law and preserving the family
Article 72 of the Family Code contains a rule defining the indispensable consideration of the child’s opinion on the issue of restoration of parental rights under consideration. In this case, only the position of children who have reached the age of 10 is obligatory for the court to take into account. If the child has not yet reached the specified age, the court will listen to his opinion, but will not take it as the basis for the decision. If a child wants to be with his mother and has reached the age of ten years, then restoring the mother’s parental rights will be quick and simple. The restoration of the father's parental rights is practically no different from the same procedure for the mother.
Exercising your right to restoration of parental rights can be a rather lengthy and complex procedure. Since legal assistance may be required when compiling the documentary basis for a claim and preparing a direct statement of claim, competent and competent legal advice can provide serious and thorough support to the persons involved in the process.
Documents required to restore parental rights
As a rule, the following documents are needed:
- characteristics from the place of work, as well as characteristics from the district police officer at the place of residence,
- a certificate of income, a conclusion from a medical organization about the absence of diseases that prevent communication with the child, or about completion of a rehabilitation course for treatment of alcoholism and drug addiction,
- an apartment inspection report, which will confirm that this living space is comfortable, and the child will be able to live comfortably in such a room.
The collection of these documents should be approached extremely responsibly, since when analyzing them, the judge will find out what legal grounds exist for the return of parental rights. For example, the judge will check whether the mother or father's income is sufficient for the child to receive full support. Another important document is the conclusion of a medical organization. This conclusion confirms not only the physical, but also the mental health of the parents.
When during the proceedings the court requires other documentary evidence of one or another basis for the restoration of parental rights, the judge himself indicates to the parties what other papers or certificates the court needs.
How to file a claim for restoration of parental rights
The most correct strategic move when preparing this type of claim would be to work with the court’s decision on the claim for deprivation of parental rights. The plaintiff will justify his demands for the restoration of parental rights based on the reasons for deprivation established by the court.
If this is chronic alcoholism, then it is necessary to prove the fact of treatment for this disease. And the fact that at the moment the parent is completely cured. If the court has established an abuse of rights, for example, inclination to vagrancy, it is necessary to prove changes in lifestyle. Moreover, such a change must be persistent (permanent). When the basis for deprivation was malicious evasion of alimony payments, it is necessary to prove participation in the maintenance of the child and the fact of having a job.
Deprivation of parental rights usually occurs when the generally unfavorable lifestyle of the parent is established. Therefore, then the parent proves to the court (by providing written evidence in the form of characteristics from places of work, copies of work records, rental agreements or purchase and sale of housing, etc., as well as by calling witnesses to the court) that he can provide the child with proper care, attention, maintenance and care.
Providing evidence of ownership of some kind of housing (even rent) is mandatory. As well as certificates from the place of work. It is advisable to ask the police department (precinct commissioner) about the characteristics of the deprived parent. If, simultaneously with the restoration of rights, the parent wants the child to live with him, this must also be reflected in the text of the claim.
When preparing to go to court, we recommend filing a claim for restoration of parental rights and filling it out based on your specific situation. You can use the example of a claim and other examples for similar requirements. We recommend that you search for additional information on this issue on the website. Ask questions to a lawyer if something is not clear.
Restoration of parental rights if the child is adopted. Refusal to satisfy the claim
The judge may refuse a claim for restoration of parental rights in the event of their deprivation if he considers that at the time of the application of the father or second parent of the child there are no legal grounds for satisfying the requirements. It is worth noting that the court’s refusal, in which the claim is not satisfied, can subsequently be appealed to the appellate authority. As a rule, the judge refuses to satisfy the requirements when the child has already been adopted, because in this case the conditions of the law that guarantee the child the right to live and be raised in a family will be violated.
However, refusal to satisfy the claim does not deprive the parents of the right to subsequently again file a statement of claim with similar demands. In the event that the application is subsequently drawn up in the manner prescribed by law, and other conditions, if not met, are met by the judge who originally issued the refusal, it can be assumed that restoration of parental rights will become possible.
When the court has refused to restore parental rights if the child is adopted, you can resort to court again only if the adoption is cancelled. How to cancel an adoption when a minor is adopted is stated in Art. 140 of the Family Code.
Who can apply
A mother or father has the right to submit an application after deprivation of parental rights.
An important condition is the existence of grounds for restoring rights: for example, if a person was deprived of his rights due to non-payment of alimony, then before going to court he must pay the debt in full. If a person has abused alcoholic beverages, then he needs to get rid of his addiction.
An application can be submitted even after parental rights have been restricted. If there is a restriction, the court may allow meetings between the parent and the child, but if the rights are deprived, the adult is completely deprived of the opportunity to communicate with the child. The procedure for restoring rights does not change.
Attention! If the child has already been adopted by another person, then the parent will not be able to restore his rights in relation to the minor.
There are other grounds for refusing to reinstate the applicant’s rights:
- a person was deprived of his rights due to the sexual seduction of a child or his beating;
- the child became fully capable at the age of 16;
- the child has reached the age of 18;
- there are no grounds for satisfying the claims, that is, there is still a reason for the deprivation of rights.
Court decision on restoration of parental rights
At the end of the consideration of the case, the judge makes a decision, which contains all the legal grounds for refusing or satisfying the requirements. This judicial act has legal consequences for all participants in the process and is mandatory.
Court decisions consist of 4 parts, where the first part is introductory, the second is descriptive, the third is motivating, and the fourth is operative. As a rule, it is possible to receive the operative part of the decision immediately after the end of the court hearing. In the reasoning part of the decision, the judge lists all legal grounds with quotations from regulatory legal acts for which he satisfied the requirements or refused to satisfy them.
You can appeal a judicial act within 30 days from the date of production of the final judgment.
Author of the article
How can you regain your parental rights that were deprived of you?
Regardless of the reason for which a person was deprived of parental rights, he has the opportunity to return them. The court's decision cannot be considered final and irrevocable. The possibility of canceling the selected sanctions is already inherent in the legal procedure itself. It is for this reason that it is prohibited to carry out the adoption procedure within six months after the court makes a decision. The same period of time is also maintained for accepting applications with a request to restore parental status.
What documents must be submitted to the court?
The current legislation does not specify the list of documents that must be submitted along with the claim. It goes without saying that you must have a passport and a copy of it. The presence of a large number of documents accompanying the claim, as a rule, makes a favorable impression on judges.
But there is a list of documents that must be present:
- A certificate from law enforcement agencies confirming that the plaintiff has no criminal record.
- Characteristics from place of residence and work.
- A medical document confirming the fact of getting rid of addictions (meaning alcoholism and drug addiction).
- A financial document indicating the absence of arrears in alimony payments.
The process of regaining parental rights
Parents who are “ripe” to restore their rights should change themselves. For this to happen, three factors must take place simultaneously:
- A radical change in behavior in everyday life and in society.
- Positive lifestyle adjustments.
- Revision of views on methods and standards of education.
To intensify the process, you should submit a statement of claim filled out in the established form containing a request to restore parental rights. This is done in the area where the plaintiff is registered. The defendants in this case are those people or organizations that initiated the procedure for deprivation of parental rights.
A package of documents constituting the evidence base is also submitted along with the statement of claim. It could be:
- About a certificate from a medical institution confirming, for example, deregistration with a narcologist.
- About the reference issued by the organization where the plaintiff works.
- Testimony of witnesses confirming the presence of changes in a positive direction.
