In re B.G.
In re B.G., 2026 UT 2 (Hagen, J.)
Child Welfare
The Utah Supreme Court held:
- Counsel did not perform deficiently when he failed to argue that the Interstate Compact on the Placement of Children did not apply to natural parents because competent counsel would have reasonably concluded that it was an expedient way to evaluate the suitability of placement with Father and that alternative methods would be impractical or unlikely to meet with the court’s approval.
- Practice tip: The Utah Supreme Court acknowledged that the Utah Court of Appeals has expressly adopted the Strickland standard in the parental rights termination context but pointed out that the Utah Supreme Court has never decided whether that constitutional standard applies when an ineffective assistance claim arises from a statutory right to counsel.
- Practice tip: The Utah Supreme Court noted that a case in which the issue was not raised below—and thus can only be reached through the ineffective assistance or plain error exception to preservation—is often a poor vehicle to resolve a legal question of first impression.