The Vermont Statutes Online
The Statutes below include the actions of the 2025 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.
(Cite as: 33 V.S.A. § 5313)
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§ 5313. Timelines for pretrial and merits hearing
(a) Pretrial hearing. At the time of the temporary care hearing or at the preliminary hearing on the petition
if there is no request for temporary legal custody, the court shall set a pretrial
hearing on the petition. The hearing shall be held within 15 days of the temporary
care hearing or the preliminary hearing. In the event that there is no admission or
dismissal at or before the pretrial hearing, the court shall set the matter for a
hearing to adjudicate the merits of the petition.
(b) Merits hearing. If the child who is the subject of the petition has been removed from the legal custody
of the custodial parent, guardian, or custodian pursuant to a temporary care order,
a merits hearing shall be held and merits adjudicated no later than 60 days from the
date the temporary care order is issued, except for good cause shown. In all other
cases, merits shall be adjudicated in a timely manner in the best interests of the
child. (Added 2007, No. 185 (Adj. Sess.), § 3, eff. Jan. 1, 2009.)