October 23, 2009

Raising Our Hands: Creating a National Strategy for Children’s Right to Education and Counsel

ABA Section of Litigation Children’s Rights Litigation Committee and Dignity in Schools Campaign
Northwestern University School of Law
Chicago, Ill.

Litigation Strategies
NCYL Senior Attorney Bill Grimm; Ira Lustbader, Children’s Rights, Inc.; Bill Ladd, Legal Aid and Defenders Association; Victor Bolden, Corporation Counsel, City of New Haven

This panel will discuss litigation strategies for securing a right to counsel, as well as legal theories and constitutional claims that have been advanced in litigation. Litigators will discuss successful cases and innovative challenges to bring about smaller and more incremental changes.


November 18-21, 2009

Justice in Times of Challenge and Change

National Legal Aid and Defender Association 2009 Annual Conference
Hyatt Regency, Denver, CO

Civil Advocacy in Juvenile Mental Health Courts

NCYL Deputy Director Patrick Gardner

Unmet mental health needs are a leading cause of delinquency, causing America's juvenile halls to become mental health providers of last resort. One response has been the creation of juvenile mental health courts (JMHCs). JMHCs use a multi-disciplinary case management team that includes the judge, probation officer, public defender, prosecutor, and a mental health clinician to connect detained youth to community-based mental health services in order to return them safely home. Several California courts have added civil advocates—lawyers and paralegals—to the JMHC team. By representing youth and families on Medicaid, SSI, special education, and other government benefits, civil advocates improve treatment outcomes and the likelihood of a successful transition home. This session will describe how the California JMHCs came about, how they work, what they have accomplished, and if and how other jurisdictions can go about establishing JMHCs.