Background
N.W. gave birth to B.W. in January 2026. Three days later, the juvenile court placed the newborn with RSR Human Service Zone after methamphetamine and amphetamines were found in the child’s system. The zone already had custody of N.W.’s other child, R.W., who had entered its care in August 2024.
The State petitioned to terminate N.W.’s parental rights to both children. N.W. was personally served with the petitions and notices of trial, although the record did not establish that she received a summons in both cases. She remotely attended a March 5 hearing covering both cases, where the court explained the petitions, the consequences of termination, the State’s burden of proof, and her right to appointed counsel. In her presence, the court converted a March 27 trial date into a status conference.
N.W. did not attend the March 27 status conference, and the juvenile court received evidence and found her in default. It later terminated her parental rights and entered default judgment. N.W. moved for reconsideration but offered no explanation for missing the March 27 hearing or a later April 16 hearing she said she intended to attend. The juvenile court denied her motions.
The Court’s Holding
The North Dakota Supreme Court held that the juvenile court had personal jurisdiction over N.W. Although the record did not establish proper service of a summons in both cases, N.W. voluntarily appeared at the March 5 hearing without objecting to personal jurisdiction. Under North Dakota’s juvenile rules, that voluntary appearance waived service of the summons. She also failed to raise personal jurisdiction in her motions for reconsideration.
The Court also rejected N.W.’s argument that a summons had to be served before the juvenile court could proceed by default. North Dakota Rule of Juvenile Procedure 10(b)(1) permits a court to receive evidence when a parent fails to appear after being properly served with a “summons or notice.” Because “or” creates alternatives, proper notice of the hearing was independently sufficient even without formal service of a summons.
N.W. had oral and written notice of the March 27 hearing and had been reminded of it earlier that week. The rule applies when a parent misses any hearing, not only a trial. Given N.W.’s unexplained absences and pattern of nonparticipation, the juvenile court did not abuse its discretion by denying relief from the default judgment. The Supreme Court affirmed both the default judgment terminating her parental rights and the order denying reconsideration.
Key Takeaways
- A parent may waive formal service of a juvenile-court summons by voluntarily appearing and failing to object to personal jurisdiction.
- Rule 10(b)(1) permits a juvenile court to receive evidence after a parent fails to attend a hearing upon proper service of either a summons or notice of the hearing.
- A status conference qualifies as “a hearing” under the rule, and oral notice may be sufficient to support default when the parent fails to appear.
Why It Matters
The decision clarifies that defects or uncertainty in service of a formal summons will not necessarily prevent a North Dakota juvenile court from proceeding when a parent voluntarily appears or otherwise receives proper notice. Attorneys must preserve personal-jurisdiction objections when appearing and raise them again when seeking relief from a default judgment.
The opinion also confirms that parents must attend all properly noticed juvenile-court hearings, including status conferences. A court may receive termination evidence following an unexplained failure to appear even when the scheduled proceeding was not labeled a trial.