In Re Madison W.

47 Cal.Rptr.3d 143 (2006) 141 Cal.App.4th 1447 In re MADISON W., a Person Coming Under the Juvenile Court Law.

Tulare County Health and Human Services Agency, Plaintiff and Respondent,

v.

Ofelia W., Defendant and Appellant.

No. F049851. Court of Appeal of California, Fifth District.

August 10, 2006. Mario de Solenni, under appointment by the Court of Appeal, for Defendant and Appellant.

Kathleen Bales-Lange, County Counsel, and Bryan Walters, Deputy County Counsel, for Plaintiff and Respondent.

Certified for Partial Publication.[*]

OPINION

VARTABEDIAN, Acting P.J.

Ofelia W. appeals from an order terminating her parental rights (Welf. & Inst. [144] Code, § 366.26) to her daughter Madison.[1] Appellant contends the court erred three days earlier by denying her petition for reunification services (§ 388). On review, we will affirm.

In the published portion of our opinion, we hold liberal construction of a parent's notice of appeal from an order terminating parental rights encompasses the denial of the parent's section 388 petition provided the trial court issued its denial during the 60-day period prior to the parent's filing the notice of appeal

PROCEDURAL AND FACTUAL HISTORY[**]

DISCUSSION

I. Appealability

Appellant's trial counsel filed a notice of appeal on February 23, 2006, stating she was appealing from the January 13, 2006 order terminating parental rights. The notice of appeal contained no reference to the January 10th order denying the section 388 petition.

After court-appointed appellate counsel filed his opening brief challenging the denial of appellant's section 388 petition, the agency disputed this court's jurisdiction to resolve the issue given the terms of appellant's notice of appeal. Appellate counsel thereafter moved to amend the notice of appeal or to request this court's liberal construction of the notice of appeal to include a challenge to the denial of the section 388 petition. We deferred the issue until now.