The Vermont Statutes Online
The Statutes below include the actions of the 2024 session of the General Assembly.
NOTE: The Vermont Statutes Online is an unofficial copy of the Vermont Statutes Annotated that is provided as a convenience.
Title 33 : Human Services
Chapter 051 : General Provisions
(Cite as: 33 V.S.A. § 5103)-
§ 5103. Jurisdiction
(a) The Family Division of the Superior Court shall have exclusive jurisdiction over all proceedings concerning a child who is or who is alleged to be a delinquent child or a child in need of care or supervision brought under the authority of the juvenile judicial proceedings chapters, except as otherwise provided in such chapters.
(b) Orders issued under the authority of the juvenile judicial proceedings chapters shall take precedence over orders in other Family Division proceedings and any order of another court of this State, to the extent they are inconsistent. This section shall not apply to child support orders in a divorce, parentage, or relief from abuse proceedings until a child support order has been issued in the juvenile proceeding.
(c)(1) Except as otherwise provided by this title and by subdivision (2) of this subsection, jurisdiction over a child shall not be extended beyond the child’s 18th birthday.
[Subdivision (c)(2) effective until April 1, 2025; see also subdivision (c)(2) effective April 1, 2025, set out below.]
(2)(A) Jurisdiction over a child with a delinquency may be extended until six months beyond the child’s:
(i) 19th birthday if the child was 16 or 17 years of age when he or she committed the offense; or
(ii) 20th birthday if the child was 18 years of age when he or she committed the offense.
(B) Except for custody of individuals 18 years of age or older that may be ordered by the court under the authority of chapter 52 of this title, custody of a child or youth 18 years of age or older shall not be retained by or transferred to the Commissioner for Children and Families.
(C) Jurisdiction over a child in need of care or supervision shall not be extended beyond the child’s 18th birthday.
(D) Jurisdiction over a youthful offender shall not extend beyond the youth’s 22nd birthday.
[Subdivision (c)(2) effective April 1, 2025; see also subdivision (c)(2) effective until April 1, 2025, set out above.]
(2)(A) Jurisdiction over a child with a delinquency may be extended until six months beyond the child’s:
(i) 19th birthday if the child was 16 or 17 years of age when the child committed the offense;
(ii) 20th birthday if the child was 18 years of age when the child committed the offense; or
(iii) 21st birthday if the child was 19 years of age when the child committed the offense.
(B) Except for custody of individuals 18 years of age or older that may be ordered by the court under the authority of chapter 52 of this title, custody of a child or youth 18 years of age or older shall not be retained by or transferred to the Commissioner for Children and Families.
(C) Jurisdiction over a child in need of care or supervision shall not be extended beyond the child’s 18th birthday.
(D) Jurisdiction over a youthful offender shall not extend beyond the youth’s 22nd birthday.
(d) The court may terminate its jurisdiction over a child prior to the child’s 18th birthday by order of the court. If the child is not subject to another juvenile proceeding, jurisdiction shall terminate automatically in the following circumstances:
(1) upon the discharge of a child from juvenile or youthful offender probation, provided the child is not in the legal custody of the Commissioner;
(2) upon an order of the court transferring legal custody to a parent, guardian, or custodian without conditions or protective supervision; or
(3) upon the adoption of a child following a termination of parental rights proceeding. (Added 2007, No. 185 (Adj. Sess.), § 1, eff. Jan. 1, 2009; amended 2009, No. 154 (Adj. Sess.), § 224; 2011, No. 159 (Adj. Sess.), § 1; 2015, No. 153 (Adj. Sess.), § 6, eff. Jan. 1, 2018; 2017, No. 201 (Adj. Sess.), § 5, eff. May 30, 2018; 2019, No. 45, § 2, eff. May 30, 2019; 2019, No. 124 (Adj. Sess.), § 2, eff. July 1, 2020; 2019, No. 124 (Adj. Sess.), § 3, eff. July 1, 2024; 2021, No. 65, §§ 14, 15, eff. June 7, 2021; 2023, No. 125 (Adj. Sess.), § 10, eff. April 1, 2025.)
