Evidentiary standards for Indian Child Welfare Act issues determined
In In re the Parental Rights as to N.J., the Nevada Supreme Court held that a dual-standard burden of proof is appropriate for evidentiary findings in parental termination cases involving the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA), with the higher beyond-a-reasonable-doubt evidentiary standards of the ICWA used for ICWA-related findings, and Nevada’s clear-and-convincing evidence standard for state law findings. The Court also held that under specific circumstances, such as when the breakup of a Native American family is not at issue, application of the Existing Indian Family (EIF) doctrine, a judicially created exception to the ICWA, may be appropriate.
Decided December 24, 2009, 7-0 decision, authored by Saitta.
