Press Releases
Notice issued on fee settlement in Michigan
Following the entry of the October 24, 2008, consent decree in Dwayne B. v. Granholm, counsel for the plaintiffs and the Michigan Department of Human Services have resolved the amount of fees and expenses to be paid by the state of Michigan to plaintiffs’ counsel pursuant to 42 USC Section 1988. The parties have moved […]
December 16, 2008Connecticut Court Order Produces Initial Results, but New Report Highlights Ongoing Concerns
BRIDGEPORT, CT — Under a new court order secured in July 2008 by Children’s Rights in a longstanding effort to reform Connecticut’s child welfare system, the state Department of Children and Families (DCF) has begun reducing its backlog of foster children waiting for health check-ups, intensively reviewing the cases of several thousand children languishing in […]
December 15, 2008New Report Praises Progress in TN Child Welfare Reform Effort, Outlines Challenges Ahead
NASHVILLE, TN — Seven years after the landmark settlement of a federal class action brought by Children’s Rights, seeking the reform of Tennessee’s once-failing child welfare system on behalf of all children in its custody, a new independent progress report released today praises the state for implementing a broad range of important systemwide improvements — […]
December 11, 2008Georgia Agrees to Aggressive Plan to Find Permanent Homes for Kids Stuck in Foster Care
ATLANTA, GA — Facing the continued threat of contempt proceedings for violating the terms of a longstanding court order secured by Children’s Rights mandating the reform of the Atlanta child welfare system, Georgia officials have agreed to an aggressive new plan to reduce a persistent backlog of hundreds of children who have languished for years […]
November 19, 2008Atlanta Monitoring Foster Children More Carefully, But Still Failing to Provide Critical Services
ATLANTA, GA — Three years after the state of Georgia undertook a major effort to reform the Atlanta child welfare system under a federal court order secured by Children’s Rights, the Division of Family and Children Services (DFCS) has improved its oversight of abused and neglected children in state custody, says a new report issued […]
October 30, 2008New Jersey Child Welfare Reforms Remain on Track, but New Report Notes Concerns
NEWARK, NJ — New Jersey continues to make progress in implementing the first phase of a massive child welfare reform effort mandated by the settlement of a federal class action brought by Children’s Rights on behalf of children dependent on the state’s child welfare system, according to a report released today by the independent monitor […]
October 14, 2008Georgia County Exits Court Oversight After Reform of Legal Representation for Foster Children
ATLANTA – DeKalb County (metro Atlanta) has made dramatic improvements in the quality of legal representation it provides to children in foster care, met all of the requirements of a court order mandating the comprehensive reform of its Child Advocacy Center, and today joined the national advocacy group Children’s Rights and co-counsel in seeking an […]
October 7, 2008Federal Court Approves Landmark Settlement Mandating Michigan Child Welfare Reform
DETROIT, MI — A settlement agreement requiring comprehensive reform and federal court oversight of Michigan’s long-failing child welfare system was approved today by U.S. District Judge Nancy G. Edmunds, who hailed the settlement as going as far as possible to address the system’s problems and put in place the best means of solving them. A […]
October 6, 2008DC Agrees to Implement Emergency Measures to Fix Child Welfare Failures
WASHINGTON, DC — Under the continued threat of contempt proceedings for violating the terms of a longstanding order to reform its dysfunctional child welfare system — and the possibility of a second federal court takeover of the system — the District of Columbia has agreed to contract external child welfare experts to develop and execute […]
September 29, 2008In CT, Backlogs of Children Awaiting Homes and Services, But Reforms Underway
BRIDGEPORT, CT — The latest progress report on Connecticut’s Department of Children and Families (DCF) credits the agency with implementing the first stages of a new court-ordered reform plan, including efforts to recruit hundreds of additional foster parents, but also highlights more than 2,500 foster children requiring heightened reviews because they are “stuck” in state […]
