Administrative Review Appeals Process

DFCS has an Administrative Review process in which the substantiated caretaker can appeal any abuse and/or neglect decision from March 20, 1998 through June 30, 2016. This process includes two review levels.

The Administrative Review occurs on three levels:

• Level One:
  • Conducted by the DFCS Regional offices via a desk review.
  • If the Regional office disagrees with the original decision, the requestor will receive notification that the case decision will be changed.
  • If the original case determination is upheld, the notification letter will include the Regional office’s findings.
• Level Two:
  • If the requestor would like a second-level review, the second-level is conducted by an Administrative Review Officer (ARO) who is external to DFCS.
  • The requestor will be given the option of having a Desk Review or a Face-to-Face review.
  • The ARO will issue a recommendation to either uphold or to overturn the case decision.
• Level Three:
  • The Department of Family & Children Services Division Director or his or her designee will then review the recommendation and render a final written decision.
  • The Division Directors written decision is final.

If you require any additional information about the Administrative Review appeal process, please contact your local DFCS office.