Center on Children and the Law

The Center promotes access to justice for children and families. Our team of attorneys and core staff work on a diverse portfolio of national, regional and local projects in the children’s law field throughout the country. Center projects are unified by two complementary goals: improving legal representation and improving the legal systems that impact children and families.

Center News

2019 Mark Hardin Award Winner

The Center is pleased to announce the recipient of the Eighth Annual Mark Hardin Award for Child Welfare Legal Scholarship and Systems Change is William “Bill” Grimm, Attorney and Senior Director of Strategic Advocacy and Child Welfare at the National Center for Youth Law.

ABA Letter Commends Federal Investment in Counsel for Parents and Children

ABA President Robert M. Carlson commends Secretary Azar and his leadership team at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services for the recent Child Welfare Policy Manual change allowing states the option of using federal support to match their own investments in child and parent counsel in child welfare proceedings.

Legal Community Role Implementing the Family First Prevention Services Act

The Center has drafted a short summary of different legal audiences whose engagement will be critical to ensuring successful implementation of the federal Family First Prevention Services Act (FFPSA) across the country.

Conference Registration Now Open

Join us April 9-12, 2019 for our spring conferences. Register by February 28, 2019 to receive Early Bird discount rates.

New Opportunities for Kinship Families: Action Steps to Implement the Family First Prevention Services Act in Your Community

This tool highlights provisions that help kinship families, along with steps caregivers, advocates, and other leaders can take to help implement the Family First Act.

Trauma-Informed Legal Advocacy

The Center contributed to a new resource for juvenile defenders on trauma-informed legal advocacy. The resource explains the impact of trauma exposure on children and on the attorney-client relationship, and offers guidance on trauma-informed advocacy.