MA: Baker proposal for guardians ad litem will only worsen child welfare system
The move would lead to unnecessary, traumatic separation of children from families writes Michael Dsida and Leon Smith in CommonWealth Magazine.
Improving Child Welfare in Maine
To improve child welfare in Maine, Chelsea Peters argues that national best practices – including a right to legal counsel for children – are a great place to start.
New Campaign to Ensure Attorneys for Children in Foster Care
The National Association of Counsel for Children launches a new campaign, Counsel for Kids, dedicated to ensuring that children in foster care receive lawyers of their own.
Oped: Right to Representation in Noncriminal Cases
You can lose your kids, home and freedom without ever seeing a lawyer. It’s a profound injustice. Powerful op-ed from The Washington Post on the right to representation in noncriminal cases.
Information Memorandum -Civil Legal Advocacy
Civil Legal Advocacy to Promote Child and Family Well-being, Address the Social Determinants of Health, and Enhance Community Resilience.
Article: The Case for a Centralized Office for Legal Representation in Child Welfare Cases
FJI Executive Team member, Mimi Laver, and FJI Communications Work Group Co-Chair, Cathy Krebs, recently published a new article “The Case for a Centralized Office for Legal Representation in Child Welfare Cases.”
Special Series: The Moment Is Now
Read Children’s Bureau Express call to action to chart a different course to strengthen families through primary prevention and create a more just and equitable system focused on child and family well-being. This article series consensus statement that stresses how we must all value and invest in families and communities.
Article: Investing in Youth and Families
FJI Communications Workgroup Co-Chair Kathleen Creamer writes about the importance of investing in families and supporting kinship caregivers.
It’s Not Enough To Mean Well
FJI Communications Workgroup Co-chair Cathy Krebs discusses racism in child welfare in her article for The Imprint, “It’s Not Enough to Mean Well”.
Active Efforts in ICWA Cases During the Pandemic
Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) cases are being severely impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic: courts are delaying time sensitive hearings, tribal family’s visits are being disrupted or canceled altogether, and case plan services are being put on hold. This raises concerns of whether active efforts tribal families need in order to reunite with their children…