ARTICLE TAG

lawyers

2/17/2020

Child Welfare Professionals Must Embrace a Culture of Scrutiny

Last week, NBC ran a troubling story involving Wisconsin doctor John Cox, who lost custody of his daughter after he accidentally fell asleep on top of her. He feared he broke her collarbone so he immediately called his wife, also a doctor.

1/2/2020

Beyond Counsel: What Lawyers Can Mean to Parents

I opened my inbox to find an email titled, “I can’t take this life anymore.” My heart sank. These were the words of a former client, a young adult who had aged out of foster care after living in more than 10 placements.

Administration for Children's Services Commissioner David Hansell said they'd seen no indicators of an increase in undetected child abuse during the pandemic.

10/31/2019

New York City Debates Lawyering Up Parents Early in Child Safety Investigations

The New York City Council is considering a new frontier in establishing rights for parents accused of child abuse and neglect, over objections from Mayor Bill de Blasio’s administration and child protective caseworkers.

6/25/2019

Hearings: A Faithful Supporter in Alameda County Court

As a community pastor ministering to foster and probation youth in Northern California, I know how important it is for teachers, family friends, clergy, mentors and others to support these youth at dependency and delinquency juvenile court hearings.

5/29/2019

Hearings: More Money for Legal Counsel Won’t Fix Broken Court Processes

A recent policy change at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services now allows for child welfare systems to draw federal funds to help pay for the legal counsel of all children and birth parents involved in the child welfare systems.

5/6/2019

New York’s Parent Defender Model Lowers Reliance on Foster Care, Study Finds

New York City’s brand of wrap-around legal representation may not prevent the removal of children from their families. But they might be getting home much faster, and without any risk to their safety.

    3/27/2019

    Hearings: What’s Happening in Brooklyn Child Welfare Court? These Days, It’s Domestic Violence Cases

    One of the busiest family courts in the nation occupies a hulking 32-story administrative tower in downtown Brooklyn. On a recent Thursday, I visited to observe the child abuse and neglect hearings on the eighth floor.

    3/11/2019

    Hearings: Stories from Inside America’s Child Welfare Courts

    On Wednesday, The Imprint will publish its first installment of “Hearings,” a series of stories from a corner of the law that is not reported on enough – America’s child welfare courts.

    2/14/2019

    In Court, Children are Unseen and Unheard

    My 16-year old client – a young woman who had already spent several years in foster care – just wanted to share her story in court. She hoped to tell the judge the ways in which group home staff were mistreating her.