Reasonable Efforts to Preserve or Reunify Families and Achieve Permanency for Children - Ohio

What Are Reasonable Efforts

Citation: Rev. Code § 2151.419

Reasonable efforts are relevant services provided by the child welfare agency to the family of the child.

When Reasonable Efforts Are Required

Citation: Rev. Code § 2151.419

Reasonable efforts must be made to do the following:

• To prevent removal of the child from the home
• To eliminate the continued removal of the child from home
• To make it possible for the child to return safely home

When Reasonable Efforts Are NOT Required

Citation: Rev. Code § 2151.419

The court shall determine that reasonable efforts are not required if any of the following apply:

• The parent from whom the child was removed has been convicted of or pleaded guilty to one of the following:
  • Murder or voluntary manslaughter of another child in the household
  • Assault, endangering children, rape, sexual battery, corruption of a minor, or sexual imposition of the child or another child in the household
  • Trafficking in persons, compelling prostitution, or promoting prostitution of the child, a sibling of the child, or another child who lived in the parent's household at the time of the offense
  • Conspiracy, attempt to commit, or complicity in committing an offense described above
• The parent has repeatedly withheld medical treatment or food from the child.
• The parent has placed the child at substantial risk of harm two or more times due to drug or alcohol abuse and has rejected treatment two or more times.
• The parent has abandoned the child.
• The parent's parental rights to another child have been terminated involuntarily.