House File 953 - Introduced HOUSE FILE 953 BY COMMITTEE ON JUDICIARY (SUCCESSOR TO HF 373) A BILL FOR An Act relating to legal representation for children who are 1 placed in, or may be placed in, foster care. 2 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA: 3 TLSB 2537HV (1) 91 dg/ko
H.F. 953 Section 1. Section 232.89, subsection 2, Code 2025, is 1 amended by striking the subsection and inserting in lieu 2 thereof the following: 3 2. a. Upon the filing of a petition, the court shall: 4 (1) Appoint counsel for a child identified in the petition 5 as a party to the proceedings if the child is ten years of age 6 or older. 7 (2) Appoint counsel and a guardian ad litem for a child 8 identified in the petition as a party to the proceedings if the 9 child is younger than ten years of age. 10 b. If counsel has previously been appointed for the child 11 pursuant to section 232.11, 232.113, or 232.126, or a guardian 12 ad litem has previously been appointed for the child in a 13 proceeding under subchapter II or a proceeding in which the 14 court has waived jurisdiction under section 232.45, the court 15 shall appoint the same counsel or guardian ad litem upon the 16 filing of the petition under this part. 17 c. Counsel shall be appointed for a child, subject to the 18 following: 19 (1) If the child is represented by counsel and the court 20 determines there is a conflict of interest between the child 21 and the childs parent, guardian, putative father, or custodian 22 and that the retained counsel cannot properly represent the 23 child as a result of the conflict, the court shall appoint 24 other counsel to represent the child and that counsel shall 25 be compensated pursuant to section 232.141, subsection 2, 26 paragraph b . 27 (2) If the child is not represented by counsel, the court 28 shall either order the parent, guardian, or custodian to retain 29 counsel for the child, or the court shall appoint counsel for 30 the child, and the counsel shall be compensated pursuant to 31 section 232.141, subsection 2, paragraph b . 32 Sec. 2. Section 232.89, subsection 4, Code 2025, is amended 33 by striking the subsection and inserting in lieu thereof the 34 following: 35 -1- LSB 2537HV (1) 91 dg/ko 1/ 10
H.F. 953 4. a. If a child is under the age of ten, the same person 1 may serve as the childs counsel and the childs guardian ad 2 litem. A court may appoint a separate guardian ad litem if the 3 court finds that the same person cannot adequately represent 4 the child as the childs counsel while advocating for the best 5 interests of the child as guardian ad litem in accordance with 6 section 232.2, subsection 25, paragraph e . If a childs 7 guardian ad litem is also acting as the childs counsel, each 8 report submitted to a court by the guardian ad litem shall 9 contain a statement indicating whether a separate guardian ad 10 litem is required based on the childs age or the guardian ad 11 litems interviews and investigations conducted up to the time 12 the report is submitted to the court. 13 b. If a child attains ten years of age while represented by 14 a guardian ad litem pursuant to this section, the court shall 15 enter an order discharging the guardian ad litem and appoint 16 counsel for the child pursuant to the provisions of this 17 section. A court may appoint a guardian ad litem discharged 18 pursuant to this subsection as counsel for the child if the 19 person can properly represent the legal interests of the child. 20 c. An attorney representing multiple children as the 21 childrens counsel, guardian ad litem, or both, may continue 22 to act in the capacities to which the attorney was appointed, 23 unless an appointment to represent a child in a specific 24 capacity presents a conflict of interest between the attorney 25 and a child the attorney represents or between children the 26 attorney represents. 27 Sec. 3. Section 232.89, Code 2025, is amended by adding the 28 following new subsections: 29 NEW SUBSECTION . 5. If a child remains in foster care after 30 the circumstances which caused the child to be placed in foster 31 care has resolved, the right to representation pursuant to this 32 section shall continue until a child is no longer receiving 33 foster care. 34 NEW SUBSECTION . 6. a. An attorney appointed under this 35 -2- LSB 2537HV (1) 91 dg/ko 2/ 10
H.F. 953 section as counsel for a child shall perform the duties of a 1 guardian ad litem as described in section 232.2, subsection 25, 2 paragraph b , subparagraphs (1), (2), (3), (4), (6), (7), and 3 (9). 4 b. An attorney appointed under this section as counsel for 5 a child shall not be required to submit written reports to the 6 court as described in section 232.2, subsection 25, paragraph 7 b , subparagraph (8). 8 c. An attorney appointed under this section as counsel for 9 a child, to the extent not prohibited by state or federal law, 10 is authorized to do all of the following: 11 (1) Interview persons relevant to the matter, including 12 but not limited to persons providing medical, social, mental 13 health, educational, or other services to the child. 14 (2) Inspect and copy records relevant to the matter, 15 including but not limited to health, mental health, education, 16 and court records. 17 (3) Attend department meetings, case conferences, 18 and meetings with medical professionals, mental health 19 professionals, education providers, or persons providing other 20 services to the child. 21 Sec. 4. Section 232.113, subsection 2, Code 2025, is amended 22 by striking the subsection and inserting in lieu thereof the 23 following: 24 2. a. Upon the filing of a petition, the court shall: 25 (1) Appoint counsel for a child identified in the petition 26 as a party to the proceedings if the child is ten years of age 27 or older. 28 (2) Appoint counsel and a guardian ad litem for a child 29 identified in the petition as a party to the proceedings if the 30 child is younger than ten years of age. 31 b. If counsel has previously been appointed for the child 32 pursuant to section 232.11, 232.89, or 232.126, or a guardian 33 ad litem has previously been appointed for the child in a 34 proceeding under subchapter II or a proceeding in which the 35 -3- LSB 2537HV (1) 91 dg/ko 3/ 10
H.F. 953 court has waived jurisdiction under section 232.45, the court 1 shall appoint the same counsel or guardian ad litem upon the 2 filing of the petition under this part. 3 c. Counsel shall be appointed for a child, subject to the 4 following: 5 (1) If the child is represented by counsel and the court 6 determines there is a conflict of interest between the child 7 and the childs parent, guardian, putative father, or custodian 8 and that the retained counsel cannot properly represent the 9 child as a result of the conflict, the court shall appoint 10 other counsel to represent the child and that counsel shall 11 be compensated pursuant to section 232.141, subsection 2, 12 paragraph b . 13 (2) If the child is not represented by counsel, the court 14 shall either order the parent, guardian, or custodian to retain 15 counsel for the child, or the court shall appoint counsel for 16 the child, and that counsel shall be compensated pursuant to 17 section 232.141, subsection 2, paragraph b . 18 Sec. 5. Section 232.113, Code 2025, is amended by adding the 19 following new subsections: 20 NEW SUBSECTION . 3. a. If a child is under the age of 21 ten, the same person may serve as the childs counsel and the 22 childs guardian ad litem. A court may appoint a separate 23 guardian ad litem if the court finds that the same person 24 cannot adequately represent the child as the childs counsel 25 while advocating for the best interests of the child as 26 guardian ad litem in accordance with section 232.2, subsection 27 25, paragraph e . If a childs guardian ad litem is also 28 acting as the childs counsel, each report submitted to a court 29 by the guardian ad litem shall contain a statement indicating 30 whether a separate guardian ad litem is required based on 31 the childs age or the guardian ad litems interviews and 32 investigations conducted up to the time the report is submitted 33 to the court. 34 b. If a child attains ten years of age while represented by 35 -4- LSB 2537HV (1) 91 dg/ko 4/ 10
H.F. 953 a guardian ad litem pursuant to this section, the court shall 1 enter an order discharging the guardian ad litem and appoint 2 counsel for the child pursuant to the provisions of this 3 section. A court may appoint a guardian ad litem discharged 4 pursuant to this subsection as counsel for the child if the 5 person can properly represent the legal interests of the child. 6 c. An attorney representing multiple children as the 7 childrens counsel, guardian ad litem, or both, may continue 8 to act in the capacities to which the attorney was appointed, 9 unless an appointment to represent a child in a specific 10 capacity presents a conflict of interest between the attorney 11 and a child the attorney represents or between children the 12 attorney represents. 13 NEW SUBSECTION . 4. If a child remains in foster care after 14 the circumstances which caused the child to be placed in foster 15 care has resolved, the right to representation pursuant to this 16 section shall continue until a child is no longer receiving 17 foster care. 18 NEW SUBSECTION . 5. a. An attorney appointed under this 19 section as counsel for a child shall perform the duties of a 20 guardian ad litem as described in section 232.2, subsection 25, 21 paragraph b , subparagraphs (1), (2), (3), (4), (6), (7), and 22 (9). 23 b. An attorney appointed under this section as counsel for 24 a child shall not be required to submit written reports to the 25 court as described in section 232.2, subsection 25, paragraph 26 b , subparagraph (8). 27 c. An attorney appointed under this section as counsel for 28 a child, to the extent not prohibited by state or federal law, 29 is authorized to do all of the following: 30 (1) Interview persons relevant to the matter, including 31 but not limited to persons providing medical, social, mental 32 health, educational, or other services to the child. 33 (2) Inspect and copy records relevant to the matter, 34 including but not limited to health, mental health, education, 35 -5- LSB 2537HV (1) 91 dg/ko 5/ 10
H.F. 953 and court records. 1 (3) Attend department meetings, case conferences, 2 and meetings with medical professionals, mental health 3 professionals, education providers, or persons providing other 4 services to the child. 5 Sec. 6. Section 232.126, subsection 1, Code 2025, is amended 6 by striking the subsection and inserting in lieu thereof the 7 following: 8 1. a. Upon the filing of a petition, the court shall: 9 (1) Appoint counsel for a child identified in the petition 10 as a party to the proceedings if the child is ten years of age 11 or older. 12 (2) Appoint counsel and a guardian ad litem for a child 13 identified in the petition as a party to the proceedings if the 14 child is younger than ten years of age. 15 b. If counsel has previously been appointed for the child 16 pursuant to section 232.11, 232.89, or 232.113, or a guardian 17 ad litem has previously been appointed for the child in a 18 proceeding under subchapter II or a proceeding in which the 19 court has waived jurisdiction under section 232.45, the court 20 shall appoint the same counsel or guardian ad litem upon the 21 filing of the petition under this part. 22 c. Counsel shall be appointed for a child, subject to the 23 following: 24 (1) If the child is represented by counsel and the court 25 determines there is a conflict of interest between the child 26 and the childs parent, guardian, putative father, or custodian 27 and that the retained counsel cannot properly represent the 28 child as a result of the conflict, the court shall appoint 29 other counsel to represent the child and that counsel shall 30 be compensated pursuant to section 232.141, subsection 2, 31 paragraph b . 32 (2) If the child is not represented by counsel, the court 33 shall either order the parent, guardian, or custodian to retain 34 counsel for the child, or the court shall appoint counsel for 35 -6- LSB 2537HV (1) 91 dg/ko 6/ 10
H.F. 953 the child, and that counsel shall be compensated pursuant to 1 section 232.141, subsection 2, paragraph b . 2 Sec. 7. Section 232.126, Code 2025, is amended by adding the 3 following new subsections: 4 NEW SUBSECTION . 3. a. If a child is under the age of 5 ten, the same person may serve as the childs counsel and the 6 childs guardian ad litem. A court may appoint a separate 7 guardian ad litem if the court finds that the same person 8 cannot adequately represent the child as the childs counsel 9 while advocating for the best interests of the child as 10 guardian ad litem in accordance with section 232.2, subsection 11 25, paragraph e . If a childs guardian ad litem is also 12 acting as the childs counsel, each report submitted to a court 13 by the guardian ad litem shall contain a statement indicating 14 whether a separate guardian ad litem is required based on 15 the childs age or the guardian ad litems interviews and 16 investigations conducted up to the time the report is submitted 17 to the court. 18 b. If a child attains ten years of age while represented by 19 a guardian ad litem pursuant to this section, the court shall 20 enter an order discharging the guardian ad litem and appoint 21 counsel for the child pursuant to the provisions of this 22 section. A court may appoint a guardian ad litem discharged 23 pursuant to this subsection as counsel for the child if the 24 person can properly represent the legal interests of the child. 25 c. An attorney representing multiple children as the 26 childrens counsel, guardian ad litem, or both, may continue 27 to act in the capacities to which the attorney was appointed, 28 unless an appointment to represent a child in a specific 29 capacity presents a conflict of interest between the attorney 30 and a child the attorney represents or between children the 31 attorney represents. 32 NEW SUBSECTION . 4. If a child remains in foster care after 33 the circumstances which caused the child to be placed in foster 34 care has resolved, the right to representation pursuant to this 35 -7- LSB 2537HV (1) 91 dg/ko 7/ 10
H.F. 953 section shall continue until a child is no longer receiving 1 foster care. 2 NEW SUBSECTION . 5. a. An attorney appointed under this 3 section as counsel for a child shall perform the duties of a 4 guardian ad litem as described in section 232.2, subsection 25, 5 paragraph b , subparagraphs (1), (2), (3), (4), (6), (7), and 6 (9). 7 b. An attorney appointed under this section as counsel for 8 a child shall not be required to submit written reports to the 9 court as described in section 232.2, subsection 25, paragraph 10 b , subparagraph (8). 11 c. An attorney appointed under this section as counsel for 12 a child, to the extent not prohibited by state or federal law, 13 is authorized to do all of the following: 14 (1) Interview persons relevant to the matter, including 15 but not limited to persons providing medical, social, mental 16 health, educational, or other services to the child. 17 (2) Inspect and copy records relevant to the matter, 18 including but not limited to health, mental health, education, 19 and court records. 20 (3) Attend department meetings, case conferences, 21 and meetings with medical professionals, mental health 22 professionals, education providers, or persons providing other 23 services to the child. 24 EXPLANATION 25 The inclusion of this explanation does not constitute agreement with 26 the explanations substance by the members of the general assembly. 27 This bill relates to legal representation for children who 28 are placed in, or may be placed in, foster care. 29 The bill requires a court to appoint counsel for a child 10 30 years of age or older when the child is identified in a child 31 in need of assistance (CINA) petition as a party to the CINA 32 proceedings. 33 The bill requires a court to appoint counsel and a guardian 34 ad litem (GAL) for a child below 10 years of age when the 35 -8- LSB 2537HV (1) 91 dg/ko 8/ 10
H.F. 953 child is identified in a CINA petition as a party to the CINA 1 proceedings. 2 If a child identified in a CINA petition already has counsel 3 in a juvenile delinquency matter or parental termination 4 proceeding, or a GAL has previously been appointed for 5 the child in a juvenile delinquency proceeding or a matter 6 involving a public offense in which the court has waived 7 jurisdiction, the bill requires the court to appoint the same 8 counsel or GAL upon the filing of the CINA petition. 9 The bill requires a court to appoint alternate counsel to 10 represent a child if the child is represented by counsel and 11 the court determines there is a conflict of interest between 12 the child and the childs parent, guardian, putative father, 13 or custodian and that the retained counsel cannot properly 14 represent the child as a result of the conflict. 15 When appointing counsel for a child in a CINA proceeding, 16 the bill requires a court to either order the parent, guardian, 17 or custodian to retain counsel for the child, or counsel be 18 appointed for the child. 19 The bill requires a court to discharge the GAL for a child 20 in a CINA proceeding and appoint counsel for the child upon 21 the child attaining 10 years of age. A discharged GAL may 22 be appointed counsel for a child if the person can properly 23 represent the legal interests of the child. 24 The bill allows an attorney representing multiple children 25 as the childrens counsel, GAL, or both, to continue to act 26 in the capacities to which the attorney was appointed unless 27 an appointment to represent a child in a specific capacity 28 presents a conflict of interest between the attorney and a 29 child the attorney represents or between children the attorney 30 represents. 31 The bill requires an attorney appointed as counsel for a 32 child to perform certain duties listed in the bill that are 33 required of a GAL. The attorney is specifically exempted from 34 making reports that a GAL would be required to make. The bill 35 -9- LSB 2537HV (1) 91 dg/ko 9/ 10
H.F. 953 authorizes an attorney appointed as counsel for a child to 1 perform several actions as detailed in the bill. 2 If a child remains in foster care after the circumstances 3 which caused the child to be placed in foster care has 4 resolved, the bill continues a childs right to legal 5 representation until the child is no longer in foster care. 6 The bill contains similar provisions relating to the 7 appointment of counsel or a GAL for a child in termination of 8 parental rights proceedings and in family in need of assistance 9 proceedings. 10 The bill requires the county to make reasonable compensation 11 for an attorney appointed under the bill. 12 -10- LSB 2537HV (1) 91 dg/ko 10/ 10