Florida § 984.21 - Orders of adjudication.

§ 984.21. Orders of adjudication.

(1) An order of adjudication by a court that a child is a child in need of services is a civil adjudication, and is not deemed a conviction, nor shall the child be deemed to have been found guilty or to be a delinquent or criminal by reason of adjudication, nor shall that adjudication operate to impose upon the child any of the civil disabilities ordinarily imposed by or resulting from conviction or disqualify or prejudice the child in any civil service application or appointment. (2) If the court finds that the child named in a petition is not a child in need of services, it shall enter an order so finding and dismiss the case. (3) If the court finds by a preponderance of evidence that the child named in a petition is a child in need of services, it shall incorporate that finding in an order of adjudication entered in the case, briefly stating the facts upon which the finding is made, and the court shall thereafter have full authority under this chapter to provide for the child as adjudicated.