H.V.D.M. VS. R.W. (FD-0727-20, ESSEX COUNTY AND STATEWIDE) (RECORD IMPOUNDED) (A-2877-19T1)
In this appeal the court addressed the predicate state court findings necessary for a federal petition for Special Immigrant Juvenile Status (SIJS). Specifically, a state court must analyze the five prongs of the federal regulations set forth in 8 C.F.R. § 204.11(c) (2020) under state law before an applicant can file a petition to the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) for SIJS. The trial court erroneously concluded that a child was not dependent on New Jersey courts due to the existence of a Canadian custody order that awarded custody to plaintiff, her paternal grandmother a New Jersey resident who registered the Canadian custody order in New Jersey pursuant to the New Jersey Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act (NJUCCJEA), N.J.S.A. 2A:34-79.
The court disagreed with the trial court's determination that "the juvenile is not dependent on this court and has not been placed in the custody of an agency or individual appointed by this court." The trial court here used the conjunction "and," but the federal regulations and federal statute use the disjunctive "or."
Specifically, prong two provides that the state court must determine whether the "juvenile is dependent on the court or has been placed under the custody of an agency or an individual appointed by the court." H.S.P., 223 N.J. at 210 (referring to 8 C.F.R. § 204.11(c)(3) (2020); 8 U.S.C. § 1101(a)(27)(J)).
The court reversed and remanded the matter to the Family Part for further proceedings
