In Re C.T

In In re C.T., 182 N.C. App. 472, 643 S.E.2d 23 (2007), our Court found that the failure of a summons to issue as to one of two juveniles named in a petition for termination of parental rights deprived the trial court of subject matter jurisdiction as to that juvenile. Id. at 474, 643 S.E.2d at 25. Although the petition filed by DSS named both C.T. and R.S. in the caption, the summons issued to the respondent made no reference to R.S., listing only C.T. Id. at 473, 643 S.E.2d at 24. The Court concluded that the trial court had no subject matter jurisdiction to terminate the respondent's parental rights to R.S., inasmuch as "the record failed to show that a summons was ever issued as to R.S." Id. at 474, 643 S.E.2d at 25. We therefore vacated the portion of the order pertaining to R.S. Id. at 474, 643 S.E.2d at 25. In In re C.T., 182 N.C. App. 472, 643 S.E.2d 23 (2007), the petition to terminate parental rights was captioned with the names of both minor children at issue, C.T. and R.S., but no summons was issued referencing R.S. This Court held the trial court lacked subject matter jurisdiction to terminate respondent-mother's parental rights in R.S. because "the record failed to show that a summons was ever issued as to R.S." Id. at 475, 643 S.E.2d at 25. Accordingly, this Court vacated the termination order to the extent it terminated respondent-mother's parental rights in R.S.