CHILD WELFARE CLINIC SEMINAR AND FIELDWORK (8) (CLC 461 & 462)

Professor Rebecca S. Rubloff

CWC Students represent the NYC Administration for Children’s Services (“ACS”) in matters involving children's welfare, includng: Neglect/abuse cases, permanency hearings, juvenile delinquency cases involving “close to home” confinement, emergency hearings on applications for return of children from placements, and stays of enforcement of various orders. Skills taught include: interviewing and counseling, fact investigation, witness examination, summation, drafting (petitions, post-hearing memoranda, orders to show cause and affirmations). CWC begins with a 30 hour boot camp program, followed by fieldwork two full days per week for fall and spring semesters. A seminar meets once weekly from 6:00-7:40 and includes: (a) case rounds, skills training, substantive child protective law and procedure, ethics and professional responsibility, and (b) consideration of existing policies and procedures and proposed syst emic reforms in the child welfare system. Students will engage in a variety of activities, including: (i) drafting neglect/abuse petitions, (ii) appearing on the record at hearings and trials, (iii) engaging in discovery and motion practice, (iv) conducting fact-finding hearings and trials, (v) and engaging in all necessary and appropriate related activities. Half the students will be assigned to a Mon-Wed fieldwork schedule, and half will be assigned a Tue-Thu schedule. Fieldwork schedules will be assigned prior to registration, so students will be able to register for other courses. The course is 4 credits each semester. The 2 seminar and 2 fieldwork credits each semester are graded separately on a regular letter grade basis.

Prerequisites:3Ls:Evidence and Professional Responsibility

Corequisites:2Ls:Evidence (to be taken in the fall semester)
Professional Responsibility (to be taken in the spring semester)