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Health & Fitness

Fair Hearing Appeal

I went to the Department of Children and Families (DCF) Fair Hearing some time ago. I was appealing a false allegation of child abuse against me by DCF. I just got back the decision today. I lost and the Fair Hearing Officer “affirmed” the DCF false allegation of child abuse. I want to further appeal this Department of Children and Families fair hearing decision to support the allegations against me of child abuse. How do I do this?

 

Massachusetts General Law, Chapter 30A Section 14, Subsection 1: “Proceedings for judicial review of an agency decision shall be instituted in the superior court for the county (a) where the plaintiffs or any of them reside or have their principal place of business within the commonwealth, or (b) where the agency has its principal office, or (c) Suffolk"

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You have thirty (30) days to file an appeal regarding the final decision by the Department of Children and Families Fair Hearing Officer supporting the allegation against you of child abuse. You must file within thirty (30) days in the superior court. An appeal can be filed either in the superior court of the county in which you live, or in the Superior Court of Suffolk County.  For example, if you live in Suffolk County you can only select Suffolk County Superior Court. When you reside in a different county than Suffolk you have two choices: you can either file in Suffolk County Superior Court or the superior court in the county where you reside. 

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 "What is it that I need to file within these thirty (30) days in Superior Court?”

 

You will need to file a complaint and a civil cover sheet in the Superior Court. Upon filing you will receive a tracking order from the Superior Court.

 

 Once I have filed my complaint and civil cover sheet and I receive my tracking order what do I do next?

 

You will need to purchase from the Superior Court two subpoenas. You will need to fill out these two subpoenas. One subpoena will be given to the Attorney General of Commonwealth Massachusetts and one to Commissioner of DCF.

 

You will next need to deliver to the Sheriff’s office a copy of the two subpoenas along with a copy of the complaint, civil cover sheet and tracking order. The sheriff will serve it upon the Attorney General of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and the Commissioner of DCF the materials you have given to the sheriff. Once the sheriff has delivered your documentation this sheriff will send you back a notice indicating that such has occurred. Hold onto this document from the sheriff, which proves that the documentation has been served properly. You are going to want to file that with the court to assure to the court that this process has transpired.

 

It is advisable to contact the Superior Court to determine the accepted payment methods and costs of the fees to file the actions and the subpoenas. It is also advisable to call the sheriff ahead of time to determine the method of payment accepted and also the costs involved to get these documents processed.

 

 

Protect your legal rights. If you don’t know what your legal rights are, you have no legal rights. Protect your legal rights versus the Department of Children and Families by contacting Attorney Kevin Patrick Seaver. DCF can be a very intrusive agency in your life and in that of your family. Attorney Seaver will aggressively advocate for your rights so you do not have to go through this alone. If you have questions or need assistance with DCF, contact Attorney Seaver at 617.263.2633, or at kevin@kevinseaver.com

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