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Appeals panel considers whether ICWA concerns justify late appeal by mother
Summary
Counsel for a mother sought leave to file a late notice of appeal on the basis that an unaddressed ICWA inquiry and other extraordinary circumstances justified reconsideration; the Department of Children and Families and the child's counsel argued the record and appended materials did not show a meritorious ICWA claim. The court reserved decision.
The panel considered an appeal in which a mother sought leave to file a late notice of appeal and argued that the single‑justice improperly denied reconsideration because she had a meritorious claim under the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) and extraordinary circumstances justified lateness.
Mother’s counsel, Catherine Foster, said the mother first learned of possible Native American ancestry during the underlying proceedings and that agency records and an affidavit in the appendix raise a plausible ICWA issue that was never properly recorded on the docket. Foster argued the denial of reconsideration thus deprived the mother of the ability to pursue an ICWA challenge on the merits.
The Department of Children and Families and counsel for the child disputed the factual and legal sufficiency of the mother’s submissions. DCF counsel Carol Frizzoli said the affidavit and referenced birth certificate in the appendix were not tied clearly to the mother’s asserted ancestry and that the mother’s own statements were vague and inconsistent. Counsel for the child emphasized deference to the single‑justice and the narrow standard for overturning a denial of reconsideration.
Panel members questioned whether ICWA inquiries must appear on a docket and whether the mother’s submissions identified a specific federally recognized tribe. The judges took the matter under advisement.
