A Practical Handbook for the Child’s Attorney: Effectively Representing Children in Custody Cases

Crafting an invaluable resource for attorneys who work with child clients, Melissa A. Kucinski focuses on the means that allows the child’s voice to be heard – the appointment of a child’s attorney. Among other responsibilities, the child’s attorney can engage the necessary professionals, safely gather the child’s words and preferences, perform outside investigation to put the them into context, and then interpret them in the most appropriate manner. Opinions are evolving about how to keep the child as the case’s focus, but this also raises a wide range of questions and concerns: why should we listen to a child, what potential concerns exist when listening to them, and how do we solicit their opinions? A Practical Handbook for the Child’s Attorney: Effectively Representing Children in Custody Cases presents a logical and clearly presented framework for addressing those questions and providing the most productive answers. This is a hands-on guide essential to any attorney working with a child as legal counsel. Because of the myriad roles, titles, guidelines and standards for attorneys representing children, the handbook focuses on the ABA Standards of Practice for Lawyers Representing Children in Custody Cases, pointing out cases where state laws may differ. Chapters address in-depth these critical aspects of the child’s attorney’s role: - Ethics and malpractice- Investigation and information gathering- Negotiation and settlement- International casesAppendices include three charts listing, by state, helpful regulations for the child’s attorney, a summary of state statutes, and the laws governing for representation of children in court. In addition, the book includes sample forms, cases, and resources for further research.