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FOSTER
CARE COURT IMPROVEMENT PROJECT
REPRESENTATION, PRACTICE, AND PROCEDURE
SUBCOMMITTEE
Subcommittee
Members
The 1997 Assessment Report, Improving
Court Performance for Abused and Neglected Children, identified
several areas of concern regarding representation of parties. The Representation
subcommittee has been charged with addressing these concerns and implementing
the 1997 recommendations. The three major areas of concern are
as follows:
1. many indigent parents
are unrepresented at certain critical stages of a CINA proceeding, such
as a shelter care and review hearing; because of statutory limitations
concerning qualification for representation by the Office of the Public
Defender;
2. the competitive bidding process
for the selection of and payment of compensation to, attorneys representing
children raises a concern over the future quality of legal representation;
3. lack of uniform standard defining
the role of attorneys who represent children in TPR and CINA cases.
The first recommendation to be addressed
was in regard to the representation of children. The Representation
Committee began developing guidelines on best practices in representing
children in CINA cases. In July 2001, the Guidelines
of Advocacy for Attorneys Representing Children in CINA and Related TPR
and Adoption Proceedings became effective. The guidelines
are a comprehensive look at the representation of children from the initial
meeting to the final disposition of the case and every stage/hearing in
between. All vendors under contract with Maryland Legal Services to
provide representation of children in CINA cases must abide by the Guidelines.
A year after the Guidelines went into effect the Representation subcommittee disseminated a survey
to CINA Judges and Masters to ascertain the impact of the Guidelines on child advocacy in the state. The goal of the surveys was to assess
statewide awareness of the Guidelines and to what extent the Guidelines were being followed. The Representation subcommittee with the assistance
of the American Bar Association's Center on Children and the Law evaluated
the survey responses. The survey revealed:
- sixty-two percent of the responding
Judges and Masters believe that attorneys representing children in CINA,
TPR and Adoption proceedings are aware of the Guidelines;
- nine percent of the Judges believe
a substantial difference has been made in the quality of attorney representation
of children; fifty-two percent believe that the Guidelines have
made a moderate difference;
- some Judges report the Guidelines have made attorneys more aware of their role and responsibilities, forces
attorneys to focus on their client's position, improved presentation,
mandated more contact with the child (especially before a hearing) and
increased their awareness of standards in general.
These very promising responses as to
the awareness and compliance with the Guidelines is encouraging that future
initiatives into other areas of representation and best practices will meet
with similar positive results.
The
subcommittee's current priorities are two fold: (1) eliminating gaps in
representation for all parties; and (2) training for counsel for all parties.
Primary focus has been placed on eliminating gaps in the representation
of parents at critical stages in the case. The representation of
parents is provided by the Office of the Public Defender (OPD), panel
attorneys for the OPD and private counsel. The 1997 assessment report
specifically recommends that the existing CINA statute should be amended
so that it provides for legal representation of indigent parents in all
critical stages of CINA cases. The CINA statute was so amended and
was to become effective in October 2001 provided additional funding was
given to the OPD to handle the additional cases. Effective October
2003, the OPD will receive funding to represent indigent parents regardless
of custodial status at critical stages of the case. The training
priority is likewise being addressed. The Sixth Annual Child Abuse
and Neglect Judicial Conference for the first time will have a third day
to address attorney representation of all parties.
The future work of the subcommittee
will look at the interplay of the various stakeholders' representation.
For further information, please
contact:
Tracy Watkins-Tribbitt, MSW, Director
Foster Care Court Improvement Project
(410) 260-1272
tracy.watkins-tribbitt@mdcourts.gov
Representation, Practice, and Procedure Sub-Committee
Chair:
Hon. Katherine Savage, Circuit Court for Montgomery County
Committee Members:
Hon. Amy J. Bragunier, Circuit Court for Charles County
Hon. J. Owen Wise (Retired), Circuit Court for Caroline County
Hon. Patrick L. Woodward, Ex-Officio, Court of Special Appeals
Master Mary Margaret Kent, Circuit Court for Worcester County
Master Kathryn Brewer Poole, Circuit Court for Carroll County
Delores E. Edwards, Esq., Maryland Legal Services Program
Consultants:
Rita McGinley, Esq., Office of the Public Defender
Nancy Pineles, Esq., Office of the Public Defender
Turhan Robinson, Esq., Office of the Attorney General
Carol Ann Smith, Esq., Office of the Attorney General
Vanita Taylor, Esq., Office of the Public Defender
Darlene Wakefield, Esq., Wakefield, P.A.
Seri Wilpone, Esq., Legal Aid Bureau, Inc.
Project Staff:
Hope Gary, Esq., Assistant Director, Foster Care Court Improvement Project
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