Resources

By: Brad Galbraith

The legal protections for children in foster care are inadequate. The result is a broken system that strips children of their constitutional rights to justice, safety, and family—silencing them in life-altering cases where their futures hang in the balance.

We are driven to ensure the safety of the tens of thousands of children who go missing from foster care every year. The Center successfully passed state legislation requiring child welfare agencies to actively and continually search for children missing from their care until they are found.

We believe every child deserves a safe and loving home. When asked by lawmakers across the country for the single reform that will help protect the most abused children in foster care, our answer is always the same — attorney representation for children. The graphic below shows which states guarantee the appointment of client directed attorneys for all children.

Nationally, over 90% of children in foster care leave the child welfare system via reunification with biological parents, guardianship, kinship placements, or adoption. The remaining children – approximately 9% of teens and young adults – “age out” of the child welfare system without a permanent family.

An order prohibiting the state department of child safety (department) from taking rightful federal benefits away from a child in foster care and requiring the department to preserve the child’s benefits in the best interests of the child.

February 29, 2024 - The Center for the Rights of Abused Children releases a toolkit aimed at enforcing the rights of youth in foster care.

March 8, 2024 - Join VP of Policy, Kendall Seal for a discussion on the ten states that have passed client-directed counsel for all children.

The Center for the Rights of Abused Children publishes toolkit to help pass legislation in states nationwide.

Join us 01/17/24: We are advancing numerous bills across America to ensure every abused and neglected child has a safe and loving home.

Join us 12/13/23: Join Darcy Olsen, David Lujan, , Anne Ronan, Drew Shaffer, Director, The William E. Morris Institute for Justice and more for a robust discussion on the passage and implementation of the first comprehensive state law in the nation to protect foster children’s social security, disability, and veteran survivor benefits!

Join us 11/08/23: Join us on zoom to learn more about the reforms we’ve helped advance including such basic requirements as mandatory searches for missing children.

An explanation of the general differences between guardians ad litem and traditional lawyers for children.