RESOURCE What should courts and judicial officers do to improve dependency court practice and support healthy and safe outcomes for children and their families? The National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges (NCJFCJ) created the Enhanced Resource Guidelines to answer just that question.
Judging in juvenile and family court is specialized and complex, going beyond the
traditional role of the judge. Juvenile court judges, as the gatekeepers to the foster care
system and guardians of the original problem-solving court, must engage families,
professionals, organizations, and communities to effectively support child safety,
permanency, and well-being. Judges must encourage the court system to respond
to children and their families with both a sense of urgency and dignity. These key
principles provide a foundation for courts to exercise the critical duties entrusted to
them by the people and the laws of the land.
The Guidelines cover all stages of the dependency court process, from the first shelter care hearing until court involvement has ended, and provide best practices and tools to achieve the following key principles that should guide a judicial officer’s work:
- Keep families together
- Ensure access to justice for children and parents
- Cultivate cultural responsiveness
- Engage families through alternative dispute resolution techniques
- Ensure child safety, permanency and well-being
- Ensure adequate and appropriate family time
- Provide judicial oversight
- Ensure competent and adequately compensated representation
- Advance the development of adequate resources
- Demonstrate judicial leadership and foster collaboration
The Enhanced Resource Guidelines can be downloaded here from the NCJFCJ website.
