Current through August 12, 2025 (2026 Practice Book edition) · Last verified July 9, 2026
In one sentenceThis section lets the court dismiss a habeas petition, on its own motion or the respondent’s, for want of jurisdiction, failure to state a claim, repetition of a denied petition, mootness or prematurity, or any other legally sufficient ground.
The judicial authority may, at any time, upon its own motion or upon motion of the respondent, dismiss the petition, or any count thereof, if it determines that:
(2)the petition, or a count thereof, fails to state a claim upon which habeas corpus relief can be granted;
(3)the petition presents the same ground as a prior petition previously denied and fails to state new facts or proffer new evidence not reasonably available at the time of the prior petition;
(4)the claims asserted in the petition are moot or premature;
(5)any other legally sufficient ground for dismissal of the petition exists.
End
Amendment History
(P.B. 1998.)
Plain-English Summary
The court may dismiss a habeas petition, or any count of it, at any time — on its own motion or the respondent’s — on any of the listed grounds: that the court lacks jurisdiction; that the petition or a count fails to state a claim on which habeas relief can be granted; that it presents the same ground as a prior petition previously denied and fails to state new facts or proffer new evidence that was not reasonably available then; that the claims are moot or premature; or that any other legally sufficient ground for dismissal exists.
The repetition ground is the one that keeps the remedy usable. A parent who lost a habeas petition may bring another only with genuinely new facts or evidence that could not reasonably have been produced the first time.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can a family habeas petition be dismissed in Connecticut?
Yes, at any time, on the court’s own motion or the respondent’s, for lack of jurisdiction, failure to state a claim, repetition of a previously denied petition without new facts or evidence, mootness or prematurity, or any other legally sufficient ground.
Can I file a second habeas petition on the same grounds?
Not unless it states new facts or proffers new evidence that was not reasonably available at the time of the prior petition.
Source & verification. The section text is reproduced verbatim from the
official Connecticut Practice Book (Conn. Practice Book § 25-42). Prescribed by the Judges of the Superior Court of Connecticut (Conn. Gen. Stat. Section 51-14). The plain-English summary is original and written by us. Last verified July 9, 2026. ·
Official source
Also known as:dismissing habeas petition Connecticut familyPractice Book section 25-42successive habeas petition CTmoot or premature habeas claim Connecticut