What are the different courts in California that make decisions about family and children?

There are 3 different courts in California that make decisions about family matters and the care of children: probate court, juvenile court, and family court.

It is important to understand the basics of all three courts so you know the best place to go to restore or establish your rights as a parent, grandparent, caregiver, or guardian.

Here are the 3 courts and what you need to know:

(1) Family court handles cases about divorce, child support, paternity/parentage, and SOME child custody and visitation cases.

(2) Probate court handles “probate guardianship” cases. Individuals who want to become a child’s legal guardian, such as relatives or family friends, may file guardianship petitions in this court for temporary or permanent guardianship. This does not end the parent’s rights, but instead puts them on pause.

(3) Juvenile court includes two divisions: dependency and delinquency.

    Dependency court handles cases of child abuse and neglect, also called CPS cases. The government agency Child Protective Services (CPS) opens a case in dependency court if someone reports that a child may be at risk. (Note: CPS can have different names in each county of California; it is often called the Department of Child and Family Services). If a child is at risk at home, the dependency court may take over custody of the child. A child is sometimes called a “ward” of the dependency court.
    NOTE: Delinquency court makes decisions in cases where a child (under the age of 18) is arrested and charged with a crime. This court may send the young person to juvenile hall as a punishment for breaking the law. For more information on delinquency court, visit the California Courts’ website at http://www.courts.ca.gov/selfhelp-delinquency.htm. We do not go into detail about delinquency court in this guide because the guide is focused on people in the adult criminal justice system and in reentry from prisons and jails.
If you know which court your family’s or child’s case is in:

This section gives background on all three courts—probate, family, and dependency. If you already know which court your case (or your child’s case) is in, you can skip directly to the section of this Chapter that discusses that court.

If you do NOT know which court your family’s or child’s case is in:

If you do not know which court your case (or your child’s case) is in, or if it’s in any court at all, read the steps on PG. 728 to learn how to find out which court might be involved. You can also review the chart on the next page (PG. 741 to get a basic idea of what each of the three courts does.

The chart below summarizes the 3 main courts that make decisions about family matters and children’s care in california. Each court has different rules and procedures. If you’re unsure about which court your case is or should be in, use the chart as a starting point as you work towards reunifying with your children or grandchildren.

SUMMARY OF CALIFORNIA COURTS THAT MAKE DECISIONS ABOUT FAMILY & CHILDREN

GENERAL
QUESTIONS

FAMILY
COURT

PROBATE
COURT

DEPENDENCY
COURT

WHEN WOULD MY CHILD OR I NEED TO GO TO THIS COURT?

You would want to go to Family Court to ask for custody or visitation if you are the child’s parent and you have an issue with the other parent.

The family court also hears cases that involve divorce, child support, and paternity cases.[2376]

You would need to go to Probate Court in two main situations:

(1)The court has appointed (chosen) someone else (not the child’s parent) to be the guardian for your child, and you want custody or visitation with your child. A guardian is an adult (not the child’s parent), such as a relative or family friend, who has legal and physical custody of the child.[2377] Learn more on PG. ) OR

(2) You want to become the guardian for someone else’s child.

You or your child might go to Juvenile Dependency Court if the child’s parent(s) are suspected of abuse or neglect and Child Protective Services (CPS) has become involved in the child’s case.

WHO STARTS THE CASE?

A parent

(1) A person who wants to become the guardian of someone else’s child. (This could be a relative or family friend.) This person might be living with the child already, but want more rights and responsibilities; OR

(2) A parent who is trying to end a guardianship already in place through the probate court, and get custody or visitation with their child back; OR

(3) The guardian for a child such as a relative or family friend who wants to end an existing guardianship arrangement.

Child Protective Services (CPS) or the District Attorney

WHERE DO I FIND MORE INFORMATION ABOUT THE RULES & PROCEDURES OF THIS COURT?

See PG. 744.

See PG. 748.

See PG. 755.

  1. 2376

    Specifically: The family court hears those custody and visitation cases that don’t involve child abuse or neglect, and that don’t involve guardianships. This section will explain each of these issues and kinds of cases, one by one.

  2. 2377

    By contrast, adoption does terminate the parental rights of the child’s legal or biological parents, and also creates a permanent parent/child relationship between the child and his/her adoptive parent. See Cal. Fam. Code § 7505(a) (cessation of parental authority upon appointment of guardian); Cal. Prob. Code § 2351(a) (custody rights of guardian); Cal. Welf. & Inst. Code § 366.26 (distinguishing between termination of parental rights and guardianship proceedings; contrast adoption, which terminates parental rights, with guardianship, which does not); In re Guardianship of Ann S., 45 Cal. 4th 1110, 1124 (2009) (probate guardianship suspends parental rights).