Juvenile

Juvenile Division

The Juvenile Division located at the Butte County Courthouse facility (One Court Street, Oroville) handles Juvenile matters including Adoptions, Dependency, and Juvenile Justice for the entire county.

Juvenile Court has jurisdiction over court-related matters for minors (persons under 18 years of age) who violate any law or are being abused or neglected. Individuals may also be ordered to appear in Juvenile Court after the age of 18, if they are charged with a crime committed before they turned 18.

Please note that both the Juvenile Dependency and Juvenile Justice cases are strictly confidential; therefore, no information is available by telephone.  To obtain information, you must come to the Court and present photo identification that proves you are a party to the case. 

For an introduction to Juvenile Court, please see the Judicial Branch of California's Juvenile Dependency and Juvenile Justice pages. 

Juvenile Dependency Matters

W&I 300

The California Welfare and Institutions Code, starting at section 300, sets forth the legal requirements, processes and objectives for Dependency Court.

The law states that dependency court has an obligation to protect minors within its jurisdiction. Dependency matters are filed with the Court when there are reports that children have been abandoned, abused or neglected by their parent(s) or legal guardian. Dependency cases are also filed with the Court when parents or legal guardians are unable or unwilling to care for their children.

The goals of dependency court are:

  • To protect the child
  • To preserve the family, if it can be done safely
  • To provide a stable-permanent home for the child

The best interest of the child is considered in all aspects of dependency court proceedings.

Hearings

Transfer in hearings are held at 8:30 a.m. each Wednesday and Thursday, with the exception of court holidays, at:

Butte County Superior Court
Butte County Courthouse
One Court Street
Oroville, CA 95965

If you are a child or youth involved in a dependency case, please refer to the California Courts Self-Help Guide on dependency for information on the people involved in your case and your rights.

Juvenile Justice Matters

W&I 602

The California Welfare and Institutions Code, starting at section 602, describes the Court's jurisdiction over misdemeanors and felonies committed by minors (persons under 18 years of age). For certain serious crimes, the law currently provides the possibility of trying juveniles as adults in the adult criminal court.

When a youth is arrested, the police can:

  • Make a record of the arrest and let the minor go home.
  • Send the minor to an agency that will shelter, care for, or counsel them.
  • Make the minor come back to the police station. This is called being “cited back”.
  • Give the minor and their parent a Notice to Appear.
  • Put the minor in juvenile hall (this is called “detention”). The minor can make at least 2 phone calls within 1 hour of being arrested. One call must be to a parent, guardian, relative, or boss. The other call must be to a lawyer.

If allegations in the petition are found to be true and the minor is declared a ward of the court, the minor may be placed on probation with certain terms to follow or be removed from the home and placed in Juvenile Hall, or a placement or group home.

Hearings

Transfer in hearings are held at 1:30 p.m. each Wednesday, with the exception of court holidays, at:

Butte County Superior Court
Butte County Courthouse
One Court Street
Oroville, CA 95965

Adoption Matters

In an adoption case, the court establishes a legal parent-child relationship between a child and a parent who is not the child’s biological or birth parent. Adoption cases are confidential and the file is viewable only by the parties to the case and their attorneys. 

Different Ways to Adopt

The California Department of Social Services or a licensed adoption agency is part of the adoption case. The court ends the parental rights of the child’s two birth parents, and the adoptive parents become the children’s legal parents.

Find out more about the process in How to Adopt a Child in California (form ADOPT-050-INFO).

This type of adoption happens when an adoption agency or Department of Social Services is not part of the adoption case. In these cases, if the existing and adopting parents agree, the parental rights of the existing parents do not have to be terminated.

For more information and step-by-step instructions, please visit the California Courts’ Guide to Independent adoption in California.

In this adoption, the child to be adopted was born in another country. The court ends the parental rights of the child’s two birth parents, and the adoptive parents become the children’s legal parents.

You must follow this process to adopt the child under California law, even if the adoption was finalized in another country. If the adoption was finalized in another country, you must file the Adoption Request within 60 days of the child's entry to the United States or the child's 16th birthday, whichever is earlier.

Find out more about the process in How to Adopt a Child in California (form ADOPT-050-INFO).

A spouse or domestic partner of one of the child's birth parents becomes the child's other legal parent. The couple must be legally married or registered as domestic partners. 

For more information and step-by-step instructions, please visit the California Courts’ Guide to Stepparent adoption in California.

Adopting someone that is 18 or older.

For more information and step-by-step instructions, please visit the California Courts’ Guide to Adult adoption in California.

This is called "stepparent" adoption to confirm parentage. Married parents whose children were conceived through assisted reproduction or born through a gestational surrogacy process may be able to use a simplified adoption process to protect the legal parental rights of a parent who did not give birth to the child.

For more information and step-by-step instructions, please visit the California Courts’ Guide to Stepparent adoption to confirm parentage in California.

Hearings

Adoption hearings are heard at:

Butte County Superior Court
Butte County Courthouse
One Court Street
Oroville, CA 95965

Remote Appearances

Click the button below for remote appearance information.

Juvenile Dependency Matters

Juvenile Justice Matters

Instructions for remote appearances for adoption cases fall under the Civil, Probate, and Family rules. Click the button below for more information.

Civil, Probate, and Family Matters

Juvenile Forms

Click the button below to access Local Juvenile Forms.

Local Forms

Juvenile Packets

Click the button below to access Juvenile Forms Packets.

Juvenile Packets

Juvenile FAQs

Individuals and agencies authorized under Welfare and Institutions Code § 827 to inspect and/or copy Juvenile case files must submit a declaration on the mandatory Local Form Declaration in Support to Inspect and/or Copy Juvenile Court Records Without a Court Order. The declaration must be filed in the Juvenile Division with proper photo identification. Authorized parties must use the information in juvenile records only for specific, lawful purposes. Unauthorized disclosure of juvenile records is prohibited and may result in legal penalties. These requirements are outlined in Local Rule 17.11.

Juvenile Dependency cases are confidential. Access is limited to the parties to the case and their attorneys. Others authorized under the California Welfare and Institutions Code 827 may also access records.

The child in a juvenile justice case and a parent in a juvenile dependency case has the right to an attorney and, if indigent, will be provided by the Court.

Information for parents about Juvenile Justice court can be found on form JV-060-INFO.

For information on sealing your juvenile case please reference the California Courts Self-Help Guide to sealing juvenile court records.

Opening an adoption case costs $20.00. If you cannot afford the filing fee you can request a fee waiver using form FW-001: Request to Waive Court Fees.

Anyone who is invited by the petitioner(s) can attend the adoption hearing.

An adoption can take anywhere from six months to a year to complete.

Related Resources & Links