| August 3, 2012 |
The next PAAC Parent Attorney Training will take place on Friday, August 3rd at the DeKalb County Juvenile Court. Check back on this website for details and the link to register soon.
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Author Archive for Trish McCann
Troup County Juvenile Court is looking to contract with an attorney to fill the conflict attorney position for indigent parents in deprivation cases. The contract period is July 1, 2012 through June 30, 2013 and is renewed annually. The contract pays $18,000.00 per year in equal monthly installments. Troup County holds 1-2 full court days a month, (Usually the 1st Tuesday of each month and the 3rd Tuesday if a second full day is necessary). Emergency cases are scheduled on Monday and Thursday afternoons at 1:00p.m. The conflict attorney must be prepared to be present for those hearings if needed. The court staff will notify by email if their presence is not needed. Anyone interested in being considered for the contract may email a resume to Michelle Bowman, Court Administrator, Troup County Juvenile Court. Mbowman@troupco.org
The Parent Attorney Advocacy Committee (PAAC) was formed in 2008 to improve the quality of representation for parents, to promote the preservation of families, and to assure justice for children. PAAC activities are funded and supported through a grant from the Supreme Court Justice for Children Committee. To achieve its goals, PAAC has organized parent attorneys as a group to provide its members with information, training and practice support.
PAAC’s Mission: “To unify and strengthen the voice of parent attorneys concerned about families involved with the child welfare system, to support a broad agenda for advocacy, to improve the quality of representation for parents, to provide a forum for information sharing and discussion and to assure justice for children and families.”
The Parent Attorney Advocacy Committee is working to:
- ensure that every parent has competent representation in Georgia’s Juvenile Courts;
- develop and offer comprehensive training programs for parent attorneys and public defenders who represent parents;
- ensure that parent attorneys have adequate resources to provide quality representation;
- improve Georgia’s child welfare system through education, legislative efforts and policy advocacy.
PAAC membership benefits include:
- Access to the PAAC listserv where members exchange information;
- Access to the PAAC members’ only section of www.parentattorney.org, which features sample motions, orders and briefs;
- Newtworking and referral opportunities with parent attorneys statewide;
- Access to training opportunities for new and experienced parent attorneys;
- Scholarship opportunities for national and state conferences;
- Meetings through which members can formulate and express their positions on legislation, policies and other matters affecting the administration of child welfare law in Georgia;
- Mentoring;
If you have any questions or concerns regarding parent representation, if you would like to attend a Committee meeting or if PAAC can provide you with any assistance, including training, please contact the Committee through our Coordinator Trish McCann at 404-232-8900 or tmccann@gpdsc.org.
Available starting September 1, 2009, parent attorneys in the state of Georgia may access a social worker for phone- and email-based advising and recommendation services. The social worker is available in a limited capacity for 10 hours per week, and all requests for services must be made through an email submission form. The social worker will then review your request for services and respond in a timely manner.
Services offered include:
• Information/orientation on the deprivation process;
• Advisement on the obtainment of court ordered services
• Assistance in locating relevant child welfare research
• Assistance in researching DFCS Policies and Procedures
• Assistance in locating expert services
• Assistance in the interpretation of psychosocial assessments
• Other research, advisory or recommendation based services as needed.
Please Note:
Social worker services are available in a limited capacity, and are currently in a pilot phase. While every effort will be made to assist parent attorneys with their requests, there may be circumstances where the social worker is unable to do so.
Additionally, the social worker is not available for home visits or investigations, and the social worker is unavailable for court appearances. Please keep that in mind when requesting services. These services are for the development of an attorney’s strategy or practice, and therefore the social worker is unavailable to provide testimony in court.
To make a request, please fill out the Request for Social Work Services form and include it with your email submission.
You may contact the social worker at childfamilypolicy@cviog.uga.edu.
This is a pilot program that will run from September 2009 through January 2010.
