And Illinois, through both legislation and court rules, has extended its shelter care hearings to one hour to comply with the standards set forth in the Guidelines, which specify the issues that should be covered during each type of hearing. Quality of legal representation . Essential to a high functioning court process, the quality of legal representation is the focus of many states' implementation efforts. To advocate effectively, attorneys for the child, parents and child welfare agency must possess sufficient experience and skills to investigate the circumstances of the case and prepare adequately for court. They must have a basic understanding of child development to communicate effectively with their clients, and they must know which questions to ask in gathering evidence to support their cases.
Many recommendations promote improved training and increased qualifications of attorneys.
Training should be regular and mandatory and should stress curricula over one-time programs. Substantive topics should include developments in law as well as advocacy skills, and lawyers should acquire a basic understanding of children's linguistic and developmental capabilities. Some projects recommend legislation to clarify the duties of counsel for children, parents and agencies. Setting attorney guidelines or standards of representation, such as maintaining regular contact with the child client, is one fundamental step toward achieving competent representation. Judicial training and education .