January - December 2019

     

    Illegal Drug Use While Pregnant is Not Child Abuse

    Nicole Johnson

    The Pennsylvania Supreme Court held that a mother’s use of opioids while pregnant is not civil child abuse under the Child Protective Services Law, which carries with it inclusion in a statewide database of child abuse perpetrators.

    Claiming Title IV-E Funds to Pay for Parents’ and Children’s Attorneys: A Brief Technical Overview

    Mark Hardin

    An overview of the recent federal policy change that allows states to claim federal matching funds through Title IV-E of the Social Security Act to help pay the costs of attorneys representing certain children and their parents in child welfare legal proceedings.

    Overcoming Barriers to Making Meaningful Reasonable Efforts Findings

    Judge Leonard Edwards (ret.)*

    This article explains what reasonable efforts findings the judge must make, barriers that prevent the judge from making these findings, and a solution that could make reasonable efforts findings more meaningful.