Idaho Code

Idaho Code § 16-2007 (2026)

Notice — Waiver — Guardian ad litem.

✓ current as of May 2026

Find cases: SyfertCases citing this section IClegislature.idaho.gov Justiaon Justia CornellLII Search CasesGoogle Scholar

Notice — Waiver — Guardian ad litem.

(1) After a petition has been filed, the court shall set the time and place for hearing. The petitioner shall give notice to any person entitled to notice under section 16-1505, Idaho Code, the authorized agency having legal custody of the child and the guardian ad litem of the child and of a parent. The petitioner shall give notice to the Idaho department of health and welfare if the petition for termination was not filed in conjunction with a petition for adoption or by an adoption agency licensed by the state of Idaho.

(2) Notice shall be given by personal service on the parents or guardian. Where reasonable efforts to effect personal service have been unsuccessful or are impossible because the whereabouts of parties entitled to notice are not known or reasonably ascertainable, the court shall order service by registered or certified mail to the last known address of the person to be notified and by publication once a week for three (3) successive weeks in a newspaper or newspapers to be designated by the court as most likely to give notice to the person to be served. The hearing shall take place no sooner than ten (10) days after service of notice, or where service is by registered or certified mail and publication, the hearing shall take place no sooner than ten (10) days after the date of last publication.

(3) Notice and appearance may be waived by a parent in writing and witnessed by a district judge or magistrate of a district court, or equivalent judicial officer of the state, where a person waiving notice and appearance resides or is present, whether within or without the county, and shall be substantially in the following form:

IN THE DISTRICT COURT OF THE …. JUDICIAL DISTRICT OF THE STATE OF IDAHO, IN AND FOR THE COUNTY OF ….

In the Matter of the termination )

of the parental rights to )

………………. )

I (we), the undersigned, being the…. of…., do hereby waive my (our) right to notice and my (our) right to appear in any action seeking termination of my (our) parental rights. I (we) understand that by waiving notice and appearance my (our) parental right(s), to the said…., who was born….,…., unto…., may be completely and forever terminated, including all legal rights, privileges, duties and obligations, including all rights of inheritance to and from the said…., and I (we) do hereby expressly waive my (our) right(s) to notice of or appearance in any such action.

STATE OF IDAHO )

)ss.

COUNTY OF…. )

On this…. day of…., 20.., before me, the undersigned….,…. (Judge or Magistrate) of the District Court of the…. Judicial District of the state of Idaho, in and for the county of…., personally appeared…., known to me (or proved to me on the oath of….) to be the person(s) whose name(s) is (are) subscribed to the within instrument, and acknowledged to me that he (she, they) executed the same.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand and affixed my official seal the day and year in this certificate first above written.

(4) The court shall accept a waiver of notice and appearance executed in another state if:

(a) It is witnessed by a magistrate or district judge of the state where signed; or

(b) The court receives an affidavit or a certificate from a court of comparable jurisdiction stating that the waiver of notice and appearance was executed in accordance with the laws of the state in which it was executed, or the court is satisfied by other showing that the waiver of notice and appearance was executed in accordance with the laws of the state in which it was executed.

(5) When the termination of the parent and child relationship is sought and the parent is determined to be incompetent to participate in the proceeding, the court shall appoint a guardian ad litem for the alleged incompetent parent. The court may in any other case appoint a guardian ad litem, as may be deemed necessary or desirable, for any party. Except as provided in section 16-1504(6), Idaho Code, where a putative father has failed to timely commence proceedings to establish paternity under section 7-1111, Idaho Code, or has failed to timely file notice of his filing of proceedings to establish his paternity of his child born out of wedlock under section 16-1513, Idaho Code, with the vital statistics unit of the department of health and welfare, notice under this section is not required unless such putative father is one of those persons specifically set forth in section 16-1505(1), Idaho Code.

(6) If a parent fails to file a claim of parental rights pursuant to the provisions of chapter 82, title 39, Idaho Code, for a child left with a safe haven pursuant thereto, prior to entry of an order terminating their parental rights, that parent is deemed to have abandoned the child and waived and surrendered any right in relation to the child, including the right to notice of any judicial proceeding in connection with the termination of parental rights.

Notes of Decisions

Cited in 26 cases (7 in the last 5 years), 1975–2026 · leading case: Doe v. Doe, 71 P.3d 1040 (Idaho 2003).

Sort: Relevance Newest Treatment

Doe v. Doe, 71 P.3d 1040 (Idaho 2003). · cites it 4× “I.C. § 16-2007 (2001). A 2002 amendment changed this language to provide that a guardian ad litem shall be appointed not specifically when termination is sought under section 16-2005(d), but rather when “the parent is determined to be incompetent to participate in the proceeding.”

Matter of Andersen, 589 P.2d 957 (Idaho 1978). · cites it 8× “" I.C. § 16-2007. The district court thoroughly noted the shortcomings of the nonjudicial consent provisions as compared to the judicial consent of termination proceedings.”

In Re the Termination of the Parental Rights of Doe, 386 P.3d 916 (Idaho 2016). · cites it 8× “Idaho Code section 16-2007(5) does not define the word “incompetent.”

Roe Fam. Servs. v. Doe, 88 P.3d 749 (Idaho 2004). · cites it 4× “Pursuant to I.C. § 16-2007, the Father was entitled to notice of the August 13, 2002, heañng.”

In Re Dayley, 733 P.2d 743 (Idaho 1987). · cites it 6× “I.C. § 16-2007 provides, in pertinent part, that "the court may .”

Doe v. Doe, 234 P.3d 716 (Idaho 2010). · cites it 2× “We would have to speculate what the substance of any *399 “unbiased report” may have been in order to conclude that it would not support the magistrate judge’s determination that Father did not abandon GP or that termination was not in GP’s best interests.”

Doe v. Idaho Dep't of Health & Welfare, 304 P.3d 1202 (Idaho 2013). · cites it 6× “I.C. § 16-2007(5) in holding that Doe was not even entitled to notice of the proceedings, much less the opportunity to present evidence and arguments.”

John Doe v. Shoshone-Bannock Tribes, 367 P.3d 136 (Idaho 2016). · cites it 2× “§ 16-1614(1); in proceedings to terminate a parent-child relationship, I.C. §§ 16-2007(5), 16-2002(8); in proceedings under the Children’s Mental Health Services Act, I.”

John Doe I & Jane Doe I v. Jane Doe, 491 P.3d 644 (Idaho Ct. App. 2021). · cites it 2× “12 To the extent Doe was not competent, she could have sought appointment of a guardian ad litem under I.C. § 16-2007(5). 9”

Jane Doe (13-23) v. John Doe, 315 P.3d 848 (Idaho 2013). · cites it 2× “Idaho Code section 16-2007 provides that a petitioner in a proceeding to terminate a parent and child relationship shall give notice to any person who is entitled to notice under Idaho Code section 16-1505.”

Dayley v. State, Dep't of Health & Welfare, 733 P.2d 743 (Idaho 1987). · cites it 6× “I.C. § 16-2007 provides, in pertinent part, that “the court may .”

State v. Doe, 850 P.2d 211 (Idaho Ct. App. 1993). · cites it 4× “” I.C. § 16-2007. In this case where the mother’s mental capacity was an issue raised in the petition, the court should have appointed a guardian ad litem to protect the rights of the mother who stood to have her children permanently taken from *567 her.”

Show all 26 citing cases →

— Idaho Code § 16-2007(1) — 2 cases

Idaho Dep't of Health & Welfare v. Doe, 360 P.3d 1067 (Idaho Ct. App. 2015).

H & W v. John Doe (2015-08) (Idaho Ct. App. 2015).

— Idaho Code § 16-2007(3) — 3 cases

DHW v. Jane Doe (Idaho 2020).

IDHW v. Jane Doe (Idaho Ct. App. 2021).

IDHW v. Jane Doe (Idaho Ct. App. 2023).

— Idaho Code § 16-2007(5) — 4 cases

In Re the Termination of the Parental Rights of Doe, 386 P.3d 916 (Idaho 2016). “Idaho Code section 16-2007(5) does not define the word “incompetent.”

Doe v. Idaho Dep't of Health & Welfare, 304 P.3d 1202 (Idaho 2013). “I.C. § 16-2007(5) in holding that Doe was not even entitled to notice of the proceedings, much less the opportunity to present evidence and arguments.”

John Doe v. Shoshone-Bannock Tribes, 367 P.3d 136 (Idaho 2016). “§ 16-1614(1); in proceedings to terminate a parent-child relationship, I.C. §§ 16-2007(5), 16-2002(8); in proceedings under the Children’s Mental Health Services Act, I.”

John Doe I & Jane Doe I v. Jane Doe, 491 P.3d 644 (Idaho Ct. App. 2021). “12 To the extent Doe was not competent, she could have sought appointment of a guardian ad litem under I.C. § 16-2007(5). 9”

— Idaho Code § 16-2007(6) — 1 case

In Re the Termination of the Parental Rights of Doe, 386 P.3d 916 (Idaho 2016). “Idaho Code section 16-2007(5) does not define the word “incompetent.”

Annotations are extracted automatically from the opinions in the Syfert caselaw corpus and ranked by authority, recency, and treatment. Dots show Syfertize treatment of the citing case itself.