Under current law, a termination of parental rights (TPR) order permanently
severs all legal rights and duties between a birth parent and the child. Current law
does, however, permit the court assigned to exercise jurisdiction under the Children's
Code (juvenile court) to order visitation by a birth parent of a child placed in
sustaining care following a TPR. Current law also permits the juvenile court, in the
case of a child who is adopted by a stepparent or relative, to grant reasonable
visitation rights to a relative of the child who has maintained a relationship similar
to a parent-child relationship with the child if the juvenile court determines that the
visitation is in the best interests of the child and that the relative will not undermine
the adoptive parents' relationship with the child.

This bill permits a posttermination contact agreement to be entered into
between the proposed adoptive parents of a child or, if at the time the agreement is
entered into no proposed adoptive parent has been identified, the Department of

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Children and Families, a county department of human services or social services, or
a licensed child welfare agency having guardianship, legal custody, or supervision
of the child (collectively "agency") and a birth relative of the child at any time before
a TPR order is granted if: 1) the child is in the legal custody or under the supervision
or guardianship of an agency; 2) the birth parent who is a party to the agreement has
agreed to voluntarily consent to the TPR or not to contest an involuntary TPR, except
that this condition is not met if the agreement to voluntarily consent to or not to
contest the TPR is made after grounds for TPR are found at the fact-finding hearing;
and 3) the child, if 12 years of age or over, consents to the terms of the agreement.
A posttermination contact agreement may provide for any of the following:

1. Visitation between the child and a birth relative of the child.

2. Future contact and communication between the child, adoptive parent, or
agency and a birth relative of the child.

3. The sharing of information about the child in the future between the adoptive
parent or agency and a birth relative of the child.

4. The maintenance and sharing of the medical and genetic history of any birth
relative who is a party to the agreement.

A posttermination contact agreement must contain: 1) an acknowledgement by
all birth relatives who are parties to the agreement that the TPR and adoption are
irrevocable and that failure by a party to comply with the agreement is not grounds
to revoke the TPR or adoption; 2) an acknowledgement by the proposed adoptive
parents or agency that the agreement is enforceable by any person who is permitted
posttermination visitation, contact, communication, or sharing of information under
the agreement; and 3) a statement by all parties to the agreement that the agreement
was entered into voluntarily and with understanding of the terms of the agreement,
that no promises or threats were made to coerce any person into entering into the
agreement, and that the parties have not relied on any representations other than
those contained in the agreement.

At the time a TPR order is granted, a juvenile court may approve a
posttermination contact agreement if: 1) the child and the birth parent meet the
conditions for entering into the agreement; 2) the agreement contains the provisions
required under the bill; 3) the parties to the agreement including the birth parent
and child, if 12 years of age or over, sign the agreement; 4) the agency or the child's
guardian ad litem files the agreement; 5) the juvenile court addresses all parties to
the agreement and determines that the agreement was entered into voluntarily and
with understanding of the terms of the agreement, that no promises or threats were
made to coerce any person into entering into the agreement, and that the parties
have not relied on any representations other than those contained in the agreement;
6) the agency and the child's guardian ad litem submit to the juvenile court
recommendations concerning the granting of posttermination visitation, contact,
communication, or sharing of information as provided for in the agreement; and 7)
the juvenile court determines that granting posttermination visitation, contact,
communication, or sharing of information as provided for in the agreement would be
in the best interests of the child.

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In determining whether granting posttermination visitation, contact,
communication, or sharing of information as provided for in the agreement would be
in the best interests of the child, the juvenile court must consider: 1) whether the
child has substantial relationships with the person who would have visitation,
contact, communication, or sharing of information under the agreement, and
whether it would be harmful to the child not to preserve those relationships; 2) any
special needs of the child and how those special needs would be affected by visitation,
contact, communication, or sharing of information as provided for in the agreement;
3) the specific terms of the agreement and the likelihood that the parties will
cooperate in complying with the agreement; 4) the recommendations of the agency
and the child's guardian ad litem; and 5) any other factors that are relevant to the
best interests of the child.

Current law requires the juvenile court to consider certain factors in
determining whether TPR would be in the best interests of the child. One of those
factors is whether the child has substantial relationships with the parent or other
family members, and whether it would be harmful to the child to sever those
relationships. Recently, the Wisconsin Supreme Court held, in State v. Margaret H.,
200 WI 42, 234 Wis. 2d 606, 621, that the severance of substantial relationships
factor requires the juvenile court to examine the impact of a legal severance of those
relationships on the broader relationships existing between the child and his or her
family and that the juvenile court, in its discretion, may afford due weight to an
adoptive parent's stated intent to permit continued visitation between the child and
his or her pretermination family, even though such a promise is legally
unenforceable after TPR and adoption. This bill requires the juvenile court, in
evaluating that factor, to consider the terms of any posttermination contact
agreement under the bill that has been entered into with respect to the child and
permits the juvenile court to consider any other agreement by a proposed adoptive
parent to permit contact between the child and his or her pretermination family after
adoption of the child.

A posttermination contact agreement that has been approved by the juvenile
court is enforceable by the juvenile court. Before petitioning the juvenile court for
specific performance of the agreement, however, the petitioner must participate, or
attempt to participate, in good faith in mediation or other appropriate dispute
resolution proceedings to resolve the dispute giving rise to the filing of the petition.
If the juvenile court finds that a person is not in compliance with the agreement, that
enforcement of the agreement is in the best interests of the child, and that the
petitioner, before filing the petition, participated, or attempted to participate, in good
faith in mediation or other appropriate dispute resolution proceedings to resolve the
dispute giving rise to the filing of the petition, the juvenile court must issue an order
requiring specific performance of the agreement, which order is the sole remedy for
noncompliance with the agreement.

A posttermination contact agreement that has been approved by the juvenile
court may be terminated or modified by agreement of the parties if the juvenile court
finds that the termination or modification would be in the best interests of the child
or by the juvenile court if a party shows that the termination or modification would

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be in the best interests of the child, or that there has been a substantial change in
circumstances since the entry of the last order affecting the agreement, and that the
petitioner, before filing the petition, participated, or attempted to participate, in good
faith in mediation or other appropriate dispute resolution proceedings to resolve the
dispute giving rise to the filing of the petition. An order to modify an approved
posttermination contact agreement may limit, restrict, condition, or decrease
visitation, contact, communication, or sharing of information between the child and
a birth relative of the child, but may not expand, enlarge, or increase that visitation,
contact, communication, or sharing of information or place any new obligations on
the adoptive parent or agency.

Finally, under current law, all records and papers pertaining to an adoption
proceeding may not be disclosed except under certain statutory exceptions or by
order of the juvenile court for good cause shown. This bill permits a proposed
adoptive parent whose home is the subject of an investigation to determine whether
the home is suitable for the child (home study) to request the agency conducting the
home study to disclose its report of the home study to another agency authorized to
place children for adoption, the state adoption information exchange, or the state
adoption center. Within ten days after receipt of such a request, the agency must
disclose the report to the person named in the request.