Legislative proposal gives kids attorneys for dependency court

Plaintiffs, defendants, respondents, or anyone who stands before a judge in a court of law often has the right or opportunity to appear with counsel at their side. Even delinquent children have that right. Yet, those with the most to lose — or gain — in Florida’s courts often find themselves without an attorney representing their interests.

Innocent children, where the only crime is that they have been abused or neglected by their parents, are placed in the child welfare system for almost three years and face monumental obstacles in their search for a secure future. Dependency court is where the most critical decisions impacting the rest of their lives are made. But most find themselves there with no legal counsel at their sides.

Florida has the chance to change this and be among the nation’s leaders in serving its youngest, most vulnerable citizens. Proposal 40 seeks to amend the Florida Constitution to provide and pay for skilled attorneys during dependency court proceedings. If approved, children would have attorneys in addition to their guardians ad litem.

Consider the numbers: More than 24,000 Florida children have been removed from their parents due to allegations of abuse or neglect. Decisions made in dependency court proceedings affect everything from how long they will be in foster care, where they will live and who their caretaker will be, to whether they will ever go back to family and friends, or have a chance at adoption.

Dependency court also addresses and protects children’s rights to education, health care, mental health care, sibling visitation, and even property.

Passage of Proposal 40 also would prove fiscally responsible. Studies show that children with counsel at their side are able to exit foster care more quickly and are less likely to return to care than their peers.

Children who return to stable homes or a new, permanent family often thrive. They enroll in local schools, find employment, and often leave behind the intergenerational cycle of abuse common to otherwise neglected children.

The skilled volunteers in the guardian ad litem program often establish meaningful relationships with children. Yet they cannot do the work of protecting children alone.

HOWARD M. TALENFELD, FORT LAUDERDALE Editor’s note: Howard M. Talenfeld is president of Florida’s Children First and the founder of Talenfeld Law.