| Matter of James A. |
| 2008 NY Slip Op 03204 [50 AD3d 787] |
| April 8, 2008 |
| Appellate Division, Second Department |
| In the Matter of James A., a Person Alleged to be a JuvenileDelinquent. New York City Department of Education, NonpartyAppellant. |
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In a juvenile delinquency proceeding pursuant to Family Court Act article 3, the nonpartyNew York City Department of Education appeals from (1) an order of the Family Court, KingsCounty (Spodek, J.), dated December 27, 2006, which, upon an order of disposition also datedDecember 27, 2006, adjudicating James A. to be a juvenile delinquent, directed it "to provide anIndividualized Education Plan for [James A.], naming Judge Rotenberg Center (250 TurnpikeStreet, Canton, Massachusetts . . . ) as placement, as well as completing any formsor paperwork required;" and (2) an order of the same court dated April 16, 2007, which denied itsmotion to vacate the order dated December 27, 2006.
Ordered that the order dated April 16, 2007 is reversed, on the law, without costs ordisbursements, the motion to vacate the order dated December 27, 2006 is granted, and the orderdated December 27, 2006 is vacated; and it is further,
Ordered that the appeal from the order dated December 27, 2006 is dismissed as academic inlight of our determination of the appeal, without costs or disbursements.
The Family Court is a court of limited jurisdiction and is possessed of only those powersspecifically enumerated in the Constitution and by statute (see NY Const, art VI, §13 [c]; Matter of Mouscardy v Mouscardy, 63 AD2d 973, 974-975 [1978]). Here, thecourt exceeded its authority under Family Court Act § 255 by directing the nonparty NewYork City Department of Education (hereinafter the DOE) to provide an individualized educationplan for the child James A., specifically naming the Judge Rotenberg Center as his placement(see Matter of Naima C., 39 AD2d 964 [1972]; see also Matter of Lorie C., 49NY2d 161 [1980]; Matter of Janyce B.,37 AD3d 459 [2007]; Matter ofRonald W., 25 AD3d 4 [2005]) and encroached upon powers granted to the DOE byEducation Law §§ 4402 and 4404. Skelos, J.P., Covello, Eng and Leventhal, JJ.,concur.