I lost custody of my three children in 1997 because I was in jail for bad checks. Now I would like to regain custody of the children and can't afford a lawyer. Suggestions, checklists and worksheets for creating win-win parenting agreements. As you are finding out the hardest way, regaining custody of children can be a lot more difficult than most people expect.
Every state has a system both for removing and restoring children from a parent's custody.
But the agency also has a duty to act in the best interests of the children. If staffers at the agency have become convinced that you don't have it in you to be a good parent, they may well expend very little effort trying to reunite you with your children. This leaves it up to you to force the agency to perform its job. If you can scrape together enough money for a consultation with a lawyer who specializes in this type of law, it would be well worth the scraping. In addition, you should sit down with an agency representative and make sure you understand what behavior on your part would make it more likely that you'll get your kids back.