La. Ch. Code art. 1158

This is the official text of La. Ch. Code art. 1158, part of Louisiana’s Children's Code — governs child custody, child protection, and juvenile justice in Louisiana.

Not legal advice. This page reproduces the official text of a government statute for reference only. Laws change, and how a statute applies depends on your specific facts. For advice about your situation, consult a licensed attorney in your state.

Order declaring parental rights terminated; time limitations; finality

Official statutory text

A. If a relinquishing parent has not sought timely to reclaim parental rights, and if no timely opposition to adoption has been filed by an alleged or adjudicated non-relinquishing father, the court shall, upon motion by the department filed within forty-five days after the relinquishment, render a judgment declaring the rights of the parents terminated.

B. The effects of a judgment terminating parental rights are as set forth in Article 1038. If the court has terminated the rights of both parents of the child, it also shall certify the child for adoption and continue custody in the department.

C. No action to annul a judgment terminating parental rights pursuant to this Chapter shall be brought for any reason after ninety days from its signing or after a decree of adoption has been entered, whichever is earlier.

Acts 2003, No. 609, ยง2.

Status: in_force · Read it on the official government site

About this page: Statute text is reproduced from official government publishers via the Open US Law dataset (Vaquill AI, snapshot v2026.08, CC BY 4.0). Primary legislative text like this is public domain under the government-edicts doctrine (Georgia v. Public.Resource.Org, 2020). We link every section back to its official source so you can verify it independently.