On October 20, 2022, the Children’s Commission hosted a live webcast entitled “Enhancing the Experience of Children & Youth in Court: How Judges and Attorneys Can Prepare and Support Youth Attending Court.” The discussion focused on the importance of youth voice and best practices for preparing a child client for a court appearance, including speaking with the judge about their needs and goals.

The webcast featured a panel with a judge, attorney, and leaders with lived experience in the child welfare system. The panel included the following speakers:

• Hon. Delia Gonzales, Associate Judge, Dallas County Child Protection and Permanency Court;
• Lori Duke, Co-Director and Clinical Professor, Children’s Rights Clinic, University of Texas School of Law;
• Betty Bajika, former Young Adult Leadership Council Member, Texas Network of Youth Services; 
• Leroy Berrones Soto, Project Coordinator, Child Welfare Reviews Project, JBS International, Inc.; and
• Ryan Harris, former Conservatorship Caseworker, Department of Family and Protective Services.

The recorded webcast was approved for 1.0 hour of MCLE, with 0.25 hours of ethics credit. The video replay and MCLE self-reporting information is now available on the Children's Commission’s On-Demand MCLE webpage.