North Carolina Administrative Code › Title 27 - STATE BAR › Chapter 01 - RULES AND REGULATIONS FOR THE NORTH CAROLINA STATE BAR › Subchapter D - RULES OF THE STANDING COMMITTEES OF THE NORTH CAROLINA STATE BAR › Section .3400 - CERTIFICATION STANDARDS FOR THE CHILD WELFARE LAW SPECIALTY › Section 01D .3405 - STANDARDS FOR CERTIFICATION AS A SPECIALIST IN CHILD WELFARE LAW

Current through Register Vol. 39, No. 2, July 15, 2024
Each applicant for certification as a specialist in child
					 welfare law shall meet the minimum standards set forth in Rule .1720 of this
					 subchapter. In addition, each applicant shall meet following standards for
					 certification in child welfare law:
(a) Licensure and Practice - An applicant
				  shall be licensed and in good standing to practice law in North Carolina as of
				  the date of application. An applicant shall continue to be licensed and in good
				  standing to practice law in North Carolina during the period of
				  certification.
(b) Substantial
				  Involvement - An applicant shall affirm to the board that the applicant has
				  experience through substantial involvement in child welfare law.
(1) Substantial involvement shall mean that
				  during the five years immediately preceding the application, the applicant
				  devoted an average of at least 500 hours a year to the practice of child
				  welfare law but not less than 350 hours in any one year.
(2) Practice shall mean substantive legal
				  work in child welfare law done primarily for the purpose of providing legal
				  advice or representation, including the activities described in paragraph (3),
				  or a practice equivalent as described in paragraph (4).
(3) Substantive legal work in child welfare
				  law focuses on a combination of abuse, neglect, dependency, and termination of
				  parental rights proceedings as governed by N.C.G.S. Chapter 7B ("the Juvenile
				  Code"). Types of work involve staffing cases; advising clients; participating
				  in department of social services' team meeting involving the juvenile and
				  family; preparing for trial; researching, drafting, or editing written
				  pleadings (petitions, motions, responses to motions, written argument to the
				  district court, appellate briefs); representing clients in district court
				  juvenile proceedings, and family law court proceedings with substantial child
				  protective services involvement; participating in oral arguments before the
				  North Carolina appellate courts; consultation on child welfare issues with
				  other counsel and child welfare professionals; authoring scholarly work related
				  to child welfare; and teaching child welfare i) at an ABA accredited North
				  Carolina law school, ii) for approved CLE credit at both a North Carolina or
				  national program, iii) for North Carolina professional continuing education
				  requirements, and iv) for prospective and current Guardian ad Litem staff and
				  volunteers.
(4) "Practice
				  equivalent" shall mean:
(A) Service as a law
				  professor concentrating in the teaching of child welfare law for up to two
				  years during the five years prior to application may be substituted for an
				  equivalent number of years of experience necessary to meet the five-year
				  requirement set forth in Rule .3405(b)(1);
(B) Service as a district court judge who has
				  attained juvenile court certification through the AOC in North Carolina. Such
				  certification may count for one year of experience in meeting the five-year
				  requirement.