NACC was pleased to participate in The Summit, Georgia's Child Welfare Conference.
NACC's Director of Legal and Policy Advocacy,
Brooke Silverthorn,
JD, CWLS, presented to discuss Georgia's child representation statutes and address the challenges of dual-representation of children as both a children's attorney and Guardian ad Litem.
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Give the Gift of Membership!
Our 40
th
anniversary campaign continues, and giving the gift of membership is just one more way you can support NACC and the work we do.
Give a colleague, friend, or family member a Bronze, Silver, or Gold membership or renew/extend their existing one during this very special 40% off campaign!
Click
here
for the gift membership order form, and reach out to
[email protected]
with any questions or for more details!
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The election results are in!
New Board Members
- Currey Cook, JD
- Amy Harfeld, JD
- Sonia Velazquez (returning to the board)
Re-elected
- Leslie Heimov, JD, CWLS
- Hon. Erik Pitchal
- John Stuemky, MD
Thank you to our members for voting. Newly elected board members will begin January 1, 2018.
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NACC, along with the Youth Law Center, filed an amicus brief in a case in Michigan in support of a mother whose children were removed from her custody based on allegations of neglect. The mother was represented in the trial court, and is being represented on appeal, by the National Center for Lesbian Rights. One of the children was struggling with gender identity issues and the mother followed the advice of competent medical professionals in responding to her child’s gender non-conforming behavior. NACC argues that the allegations in the case did not a meet either the Michigan or the Constitutional legal standard for removal based on abuse or neglect. Read the brief
here
.
NACC, along with many other children’s rights organizations, signed on to a Comment to the
American Correctional Association regarding their Proposed Expected Practices and Definitions for the Use of Separation with Juveniles
. The Comment was authored by the Center for Children’s Law and Policy, the Juvenile Law Center, and the ACLU. For more information please visit the
Stop Solitary for Kids website
and view The Comment
here
.
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Congratulations to these new CWLS!
Matthew Bernstein, JD, CWLS
Pegasus Legal Services for Children
Albuquerque, NM
Megan Deeley, JD, CWLS
Committee for Public Counsel Services
Worcester, MA
Matthew Johnson, JD, CWLS
Utah Office of the Guardian ad Litem and CASA
Layton, UT
Irene Serlis, JD, CWLS
Irene Serlis and Associates, LLC
Dawsonville, GA
CWLS Annual Reports, Fees, and Recertification Paperwork Due
The end of the year is quickly approaching! If you haven’t already done so, please log in to your NACC profile and
complete the annual disclosure of conduct questions
and submit your annual fee. It is important that we have your submission in order to include you in our report to the ABA and state bar associations (for certain states).
Also, please feel free to submit any remaining 5-year recertification paperwork to Ginger Burton, certification program administrator, at
[email protected]
.
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Call for Papers & Save the Date!
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The
Children’s Legal Rights Journa
l
is a national journal sponsored by Loyola University Chicago School of Law in cooperation with the National Association of Counsel for Children. We publish articles on a variety of children’s legal issues and we are the only journal in the country addressing legal needs of children.
We are pleased to announce a special edition of the CJRJ to commemorate the 40
th
Anniversary of the NACC. We invite you to submit articles that address the prominent issues impacting children’s justice over the last 40 years. We will be reviewing and accepting articles on a rolling basis until
February 16, 2018.
Click
here
for more information.
This special edition will be released in the summer of 2018 with a symposium to follow.
SAVE THE DATE: October 25, 2018
in Chicago.
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Submit Your Abstract Proposals Now for Our 2018 Conference in San Antonio!
We are now accepting abstracts for the
41st National Child Welfare, Juvenile Justice, and Family Law Conference
, to be held
August 23-25, 2018
, at the
San Antonio Marriott Rivercenter.
We are seeking abstract proposals to support three conference tracks: Child Welfare, Juvenile Justice, and Family Law. Conference proposals should address any of the following: Substantive law, general advocacy, trial skills, policy, ethics, and/or appellate issues. Based on previous conference evaluations and membership surveys, topic areas of interest include: Issues of disproportionality, such as LGBTQ, racial minorities, American Indian/Alaska Native children, and children with specific physical and behavioral health needs; advocacy for older youth; implementation of federal law; trends in juvenile justice; strategies for achieving timely permanency; placement/facility conditions; dual-system-involved youth; and creating system change through policy advocacy. NACC is also seeking proposals on family law topics such as custody and visitation issues, parenting time, and mediation.
A
ll proposals should seek to infuse diverse populations within the topic to be discussed, and all accepted abstracts must include a resource tool, such as a checklist, motion, brief, or article for their session prior to the conference.
In addition,
early registration
is now open for the 41st National Child Welfare, Juvenile Justice, and Family Law Conference and pre-conference! The conference will be held August 23-25, 2018 and a full day pre-conference
Red Book Training
will be held on August 22, 2018. Our conference and pre-conference are typically approved for CLE in all jurisdictions.
Visit our
conference page
for more details, to submit your abstract, and to register now. We are looking forward to yet another engaging and dynamic conference!
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- Updated AFCARS Report: This report provides preliminary estimates of Adoption and Foster Care Analysis and Reporting System (AFCARS) data for FY 2016. This report reflects all AFCARS data received as of October 20, 2017 related to AFCARS reporting periods through September 30, 2016.
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How Courts and Attorneys Help Strengthen Families
Court Improvement Program (CIP):
Family Justice Talks
February 28, 2018, 1:00 – 5:00 PM
National Association of State Courts (NCSC) Moot Courtroom
300 Newport Ave, Williamsburg, VA 23185
The event will feature nine succinct talks by nationally recognized child welfare experts all detailing the roles that courts and attorneys play in advancing vital Children’s Bureau priorities. Click
here
for more information.
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Children’s Rights are Human Rights: 20 Years of Fearless Lawyering for Children
May 1, 2018
University of San Diego Joan B. Kroc Institute for Peace & Justice
San Diego, CA
Join the ABA Children’s Rights Litigation Committee for a day-long symposium to celebrate our anniversary as well as the victories in our field during the last 20 years. We also will convene a dynamic and interactive conversation among all attendees, who will include both the pioneers of children’s law as well as the newest generation of children’s justice advocates, focused on where we need to be going next for our child clients. Click
here
for more information or to register for this free event.
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National Association of Counsel for Children | www.NACCchildaw.org
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