A federal judge has ordered a Florida state court to order emergency guardians to be notified of their rights to guardianship.
The Florida Supreme Court has ruled in favor of the state’s temporary guardianship orders.
The judge’s order came after the court ruled in January that the state is using a temporary guardians’ order to prevent the birth of children whose parents have not lived with them for six months.
The court order, issued Thursday, is the latest step by Florida officials to try to prevent a legal fight over children’s welfare.
In January, the Florida Supreme Courts ordered the state to notify parents of children living with them of their legal rights to custody, and to allow them to make decisions about their children’s care.
The order came just weeks after the state and the Department of Children and Families announced that they would be ending their custody battles and opening the door for more parents to have custody of their children.