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Scales of Justice

National Child Welfare Resource Center on
Legal and Judicial Issues

A Service of the Children's Bureau

Print Publications



How to Work With Your Court: A Guide for Child Welfare Agency Administrators (2nd edition).
by Mark Hardin and Diane Boyd Rauber

Helps agency executives and judges set up effective agency-court meetings, addresses joint educational programs, improving federal law compliance, enhancing agency success rates in court actions, dealing with "problem" judges, and helping agencies obtain legal support. Second edition covers challenges raised in federal Child and Family Services Reviews and Program Improvement Plans.


Cost: $15.99




Learning Curves: Education Advocacy for Children in Foster Care.
by Kathleen M. McNaught

The culmination of an article series that appeared in the ABA Child Law Practice, this addresses numerous topics, including: General education advocacy strategies; Education rights and key federal laws; Special education process; Educational needs of young children; How school discipline policies impact children in foster care; and Creative approaches to address education barriers for children in foster care. It includes at-a-glance practice tips, commonly used psychological tests, education advocacy resources, and excerpts from key federal laws and regulations.

Cost:
$15.95




Legal Ethics in Child Welfare Cases.
by
Jennifer Renne

This culmination of an article series that appeared in the ABA Child Law Practice addresses ethical issues for lawyers representing parents, children, and child welfare agencies in child abuse/neglect and termination of parental rights proceedings. It addresses the following topics: Quality Representation; Protecting client confidences; Representing a client with diminished capacity; Handling conflicts of interest; Interacting with other parties; Ethical issues in litigation; and Special issues for Guardians ad Litem. The appendices include selected model rules with commentary and the status of state review of rules of professional conduct. The National Child Welfare Resource Center on Legal and Judicial Issues offers free training and technical assistance on issues covered in the book.

Cost:
$15.99




Making it Permanent: Reasonable Efforts to Finalize Permanency Plans for Foster Children.
by Cecilia Fiermonte and Jennifer Renne

Permanency Planning for children in the child welfare system has undergone significant changes in recent years. The federal Adoption and Safe families Act of 1997 (ASFA) aims to create a system that is more responsive to the needs of children in foster care for safety, well-being and permanence. ASFA requires that permanency plans for children are determined at regular permanency hearings. Judges must find that the child welfare agency is making "reasonable efforts" to finalize those plans. This book provides detailed information on law and practice in this area.

Cost:
Free




Child Safety: A Guide for Judges and Attorneys
by
Theresa Roe Lund MSSW and Jennifer Renne

Child Safety: A Guide for Judges and Attorneys offers a comprehensive approach to child safety decision making. It addresses the fundamentals of safety assessments and safety planning. It is targeted toward judges and others in the legal community but is relevant for agency staff too.

Cost:
$21.99




Representing Parents in Child Welfare Cases: A Basic Introduction for Attorneys.
by
Diane Boyd Rauber, with Lisa A. Granik, Mimi Laver

Helps attorneys new to child protection cases understand their role as parents’ representatives and advocates; reviews the various stages of the child protection case; and highlights other key resources that discuss and explore the child welfare system generally.

Available on-line.




Foundations for Success: Strengthening Your Agency Attorney Office (1999).
by
Mimi Laver and Claire Sandt

Helps child welfare agency attorney offices focus on necessary changes in hiring practices, evaluation processes, standards of practice, and efficient use of resources to improve the level of representation.

Cost:
$14.95




Making Differences Work: Cultural Context in Abuse and Neglect Practice for Judges and Attorneys (1996).
by Karen Aileen Howze

Outlines ways to interact with litigants from different cultures and backgrounds and identifies key culture and subculture issues.

Cost:
$15.99




Sharing Information: A Guide to Federal Laws on Confidentiality and Disclosure of Information for Child Welfare Agencies (1997).
by  Alice Bussiere, Abigail English, and Catherine Teare

This guide helps child welfare agencies identify their responsibilities and develop appropriate policies under the federal laws governing confidentiality. Provides an overview of nine federal laws that affect child welfare agencies: child abuse prevention and treatment; foster care, adoption assistance and child welfare services; alcohol and other drug programs; education records; federal welfare reform; Medicaid; HIV/AIDS information; the national criminal history background check system; and the crimes against children and sexual offender registration programs.

Cost:
$15.99


The National Child Welfare Resource Center on Legal and Judicial Issues also contributes to numerous publications produced by the American Bar Association Center on Children and the Law. Resource Center staff frequently author articles published in Child Law Practice and Child CourtWorks, and serve as authors, co-authors and editors to books and monographs produced by the Center on Children and the Law.

Resource Center and Center on Children and the Law publications can be searched via the ABA Web Store and can be ordered from the ABA Service Center at 1-800-285-2221.