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OFFICE OF THE FAMILY AND CHILDREN’S OMBUDSMANAPPENDIX C
CHILD REPRESENTATION SURVEY
1998
A. FOR CHILDREN WHO WERE THE SUBJECT OF ACTIVE DEPENDENCY PETITIONS AS OF JULY 31, 1997:
1. Of those children who had an attorney appointed to represent their expressed interest, how many were 12 years or older?
2. Of those children served by GALs to represent their best interest, how many were served by CASA volunteers?
3. Of those children served by GALs to represent their best interest, how many were served by paid attorney GALs?
4. Of those children served by GALs to represent their best interest, how many were served by paid non-attorney GALs?
B. FOR CHILDREN WHO WERE THE SUBJECT OF DEPENDENCY PETITIONS FILED BETWEEN AUGUST 1, 1997 AND JULY 31, 1998:
1. Of those children who had an attorney appointed to represent their expressed interest, how many were 12 years or older?
2. Of those children served by GALs to represent their best interest, how many were served by CASA volunteers?
3. Of those children served by GALs to represent their best interest, how many were served by paid attorney GALs?
4. Of those children served by GALs to represent their best interest, how many were served by paid non-attorney GALs?
C. GUARDIANS AD LITEM—PROGRAM CHARACTERISTICES
1. Does your county currently keep data concerning the number of out of court visits each GAL makes to each child? If not, do you plan to?
2. Do any persons who serve as GAL also serve the court in any other capacity, e.g. as probation officer, administrator, clerk, judge or commissioner pro tempore, or other staff? If so, please identify the position and describe its duties, and specify if the GAL is paid or CASA.
3. In your county, does the order appointing the GAL define the scope of the appointment? If the order is a standardized form, please provide a copy of it.
4. Of the following functions, what do attorney GALs perform?
a. investigate and report, e.g. inquire into the circumstances of the child and report orally or in writing to the court and parties
b. monitor court orders for the performance thereof
c. attorney-at-law functions, such as discovery, pleadings, presentation of evidence, examination of witnesses, briefing and argument to the court, and appeal.
5. Of the foregoing functions, what do CASA GALs perform?
6. Of the foregoing functions, what do attorneys representing CASA GALs perform?
7. Of the foregoing functions, what do non-attorney, non-CASA GALs perform?
D. CASA VOLUNTEERS
1. Does your county have a CASA volunteer GAL program?
2. Are the CASA volunteers represented at court by a court-appointed attorney?
3. Are the CASA volunteers represented at court by their own, in-house attorney?
E. PAID GALS
1. Does your county utilize paid GALs?
2. Are the paid GALs: ___attorneys; ___social workers; ___educators; ___other (describe) _________________________________________________________.
3. Is a rotational registry system maintained by the court for paid GALs pursuant to RCW 13.24.102?
4. Are the paid GALs (non-attorneys) represented by a court-appointed attorney at court?
5. What is the rate of pay for GALs?
6. If there is a cap on the amount your county will pay the GAL per case, what is it? In what circumstances will the court grant a waiver, extension or exception?
7. How often do requests for waiver, extension or exception occur?
___ almost never
___ fewer than half the cases
___ more than half the cases
___ in most cases.
8. Are such requests granted when made?
___ almost never
___ fewer than half the requests
___ more than half the requests
___ almost always
9. Who administers your paid GAL program, judge, court administrator, clerk or other?
F. PROGRAM FUNDING
1. What funding sources support your county’s GAL program in fiscal year 1998? Please identify source and percentage of total support.
2. Does your county provide in-kind support as well? If so, please identify its nature and value.
G. APPOINTMENT PROCESS FOR GALS
1. At what point in the dependency process is a GAL appointed? Please estimate the applicable percentage for each legal event for the period August 1, 1997 through July 31, 1998.
___ filing of petition
___ initial shelter care hearing
___ 30-day hearing
___ fact finding hearing
___ disposition hearing
___ filing of petition for termination of parental rights
___other, specify ____________________________
2. If appointments are made at other than the filing of the petition, please state the reason.
3. When does the appointment terminate, if other than the dismissal of the dependency?
___ when the child returns home
___ when the child is legally free
___ other, specify ____________________________
4. If appointments terminate before dismissal, please state the reason.
5. Does your county have written rules, criteria or guidelines governing the appointment of GALs? If so, please provide a copy.
6. When there is more than one child in a dependency family, do rules permit one GAL to represent all the children?
7. Do the rules limit the number of children one GAL can represent? If so, how many?
8. On the average, how many children does each CASA GAL represent at any one time?
9. On the average, how many children does each paid GAL represent at any one time?
10. When conflicts of interest arise among children in the same family, how does your county’s GAL system respond (if the information is not in the written rules already provided)?
11. Are some appointments of GALs not actually filled? For example, if the court makes an appointment by referring the matter to a GAL program, but there are insufficient personnel to actually perform the work does the appointment go unfilled? If so, during the year August 1, 1997 through July 31, 1998, how many appointments went unfilled?
12. Do some appointments wait a significant time (more than 30 days) before being filled?
H. GOOD CAUSE
1. From August 1, 1997 to July 31, 1998, how many dependent children were not appointed a GAL for good cause as provided in RCW 13.34.100?
2. For children not appointed a GAL identify the factors cited by the court as good cause why the appointment is unnecessary pursuant to RCW 13.34.100.
I. TRAINING OF GALs
1. Does your county have training, experience or certification requirements for non-CASA GALs?
2. Are the requirements substantially identical to those published by the Office of the Administrator for the Courts (OAC) on August 20, 1997 in its Final Report on the GAL Project?
3. If not, please describe your county’s requirements; if they are written, please provide a copy.
4. Who performs the training for your county’s GALs?
J. GRIEVANCE PROCEDURE
1. Does your county have an established grievance procedure for persons with complaints against GALs?
2. Is the procedure substantially identical to that published by OAC on August 20, 1997 in its Final Report on the GAL Project?
3. If not, please describe your county’s procedure.
K. COURT-APPOINTED ATTORNEYS REPRESENTING CHILDREN’S EXPRESSED INTERESTS
1. Does your county have a pro bono attorney program for the representation of dependent children?
2. Does your county utilize paid attorneys to represent children in dependencies?
3. What is the rate of pay for those court-appointed attorneys?
4. If there is a cap on the amount your county will pay the attorney per case, what is it? In what circumstances will the court grant a waiver, extension or exception?
5. How often do requests for waiver, extension or exception occur?
___ almost never
___ fewer than half the cases
___ more than half the cases
___ in most cases.
6. Are such requests granted when made?
___ almost never
___ fewer than half the requests
___ more than half the requests
___ almost always
7. What funding sources support your county’s program to provide attorneys for dependent children? Please identify source and approximate amount.
8. Do any persons who serve as attorneys for dependent children serve the court in any other capacity, e.g. as administrator, clerk, judge or commissioner pro tempore, or other staff? If so, please identify the position and describe its duties.
9. On the average, how many children does each attorney represent at any one time?
L. ATTORNEY APPOINTMENT PROCESS
1. At what point in the dependency process is an attorney appointed? Please estimate the applicable percentage for each legal event during the period August 1, 1997 through July 31, 1998.
___ filing of petition
___ shelter care hearing
___ 30-day hearing
___ fact finding hearing
___ disposition hearing
___ filing of petition for termination of parental rights
___ upon motion only
___other, specify ____________________________
2. If appointments are made at other than the filing of the petition, please state the reason.
3. When does the appointment terminate, if other than the dismissal of the dependency?
___ when the child returns home
___ when the child is legally free
___ other, specify ____________________________
4. If appointments terminate before dismissal, please state the reason.
5. Does your county have written rules, criteria or guidelines governing the appointment of attorneys, e.g. only children over 12 years who request an attorney get one? If so, please provide a copy.
6. Do the judges and commissioners in your county commonly advise dependent children who are 12 years old or older of their right to request representation by counsel?
7. Is the advisement in a standard form? If so, please provide a copy. Is there a standard policy or procedure in this regard? If so, please provide a copy.
8. When there is more than one child in a dependency family, do the rules permit one attorney to represent all the children?
9. When conflicts of interest arise among children in the same family, how does your county’s dependency attorney system respond (if the information is not in the written rules already provided)?
M. CONCLUSION
1. Is there anything else you think it is important to know about your county’s program to provide GALs and attorneys for dependent children?