I. What Happens When the Clinic is Assigned a New Model Court Case?

Under the Juvenile Court Protocol, when the Clinic is assigned a new case, we will receive a single sheet of paper called the "Intake Sheet". The Intake Sheet will provide the name and age of our client as well as the address and phone number of the child's placement. The intake sheet will also contain the names of the parents or guardians,⁽¹⁾ the addresses of the parents if known, the name of the parents' attorneys, their attorneys phone numbers, and the name and phone number of the intake worker.

We do not usually know much at this point. We do not routinely receive a copy of the dependency petition until a few days after we receive the intake sheet.⁽²⁾

Initial Administrative Procedures

We have a few internal protocols that must be followed once we receive the intake sheet.

1. The very first thing you need to do when you receive a copy of the intake sheet is to photocopy it and give the original to Bertha Fresquez, our Administrative Assistant. Bertha needs the original to create a new permanent file. You will need to retain a copy of the intake sheet so that you can begin to work on the case while Bertha is putting the file together.

2. Double check the date and time of the Model Court Hearing and make sure it is correctly scheduled on the Clinic's court calendar.

3. Ask Bertha to change the listing on our calendar from the generic "Model Court" to the name of the case by last name of our client. [The Juvenile lists cases by the last name of the custodial parent - sometimes that can be confusing if the last names are different.]

4. In a few days you will also receive a copy of the Petition and a single sheet of paper called a Pay Order. As soon as you receive the petition, make a photocopy for yourself and give the petition to Bertha for inclusion in the new file. Do not give the Pay Order to Bertha; rather, give that directly to the clinic director.

5. When the file is ready, Bertha will give you a note in your mailbox.

II. OK, So I Have This New Case and an Intake Sheet.  What do I do Now?
At this point, you have the name and age of your client and not much more. When we receive the intake sheet, we may have no information about why the client was removed from his or her parents or anything at all about the mental state or physical health of the child. With little information at hand, it may be helpful to take another look again at steps one and two of the three-step planning process mentioned earlier in the handbook. "What do I need to accomplish right now?" and "What is my plan to accomplish it?"

1. What do I need to accomplish?
In order to prepare a plan for yourself, remember the short term goal that you are facing in approximately five to seven days: you will be attending a Pre-hearing Conference and Preliminary Protective Hearing. At that conference, you will be asked to participate in decisions concerning the child's placement, visitation, the case plan, and possibly whether or not the dependency will proceed to trial.

What will put you in the best position to respond on behalf of your client at the Model Court Hearing? Information. You need to gather as much information as possible about the situation and about our client. Here are a few places you can start to get a picture of what is happening:

A. Telephone the Intake Worker:
The person in the best position to give you preliminary information is the intake worker. The intake worker is the person who made the initial determination to remove the child. The intake worker will also be preparing a report for the court. You are unlikely to receive a paper copy of the report more than a single day before the Model Court Hearing. But the worker may already know much of what will be included in the report.

So Step One is to telephone the intake worker and inform him or her that the Clinic has been assigned to represent the child and that you (and your partner) will be the child's attorney. In addition to basic factual information, this first phone call will be a good opportunity to discover how CPS perceives the underlying situation. Is it hopeful? Are there long term concerns?

The intake worker should also be able to give you an initial assessment of the condition of our child and describe the nature of the placement. While the intake worker can give you a cursory overview of the dependency, be mindful that the information you have received is from one source only - that source being the agency. Remember that as a child's lawyer, you have an independent obligation to assess all the facts before making any decisions about a course of action.

Finally, in your telephone conversation with the intake worker, make sure to let him or her know that the best way to reach you if something comes up that needs our attention.

B. Contact Other Sources.
The intake worker may be able to provide you with some names to contact for more information: e.g., school teachers, neighbors, police officers, relatives. The intake sheet itself provides you an additional take off point.

The parents' attorneys may have significant information as well as an alternative point of view to that of the CPS worker. You cannot contact the parents themselves as they are represented by counsel. But there is nothing to prevent you from seeking information directly from their lawyers.

Unfortunately, at this early stage, some parents' attorneys might not have had the opportunity to meet with their clients. They may be just as new to the case as you. Nevertheless telephoning the parents' attorneys may still be worth the effort if only to open lines of communication for later use.

The child's placement is an important source of information about the condition of our child. Whoever is caring for the child will have had a chance to observe our client. Feel free to contact the placement and ask how the child is doing both emotionally and physically. Is the child well? Is the child adjusting? Does the child appear to need anything? Is there anything that the caretaker thinks we should know?

There are four main types of out-of-home placements. The child could be placed in a temporary group shelter, in a group-home, with a foster family or with a relative. Whatever the nature of the placement, the location of the child is confidential.

The Court has a hard and fast rule not to disclose the name of the placement - even in court hearings. The placement will generally be referred to as the "foster home" or the "group home". The foster parents will never be identified by name in reports or when they appear in court but will similarly be referred to as "foster parents" or "foster mother".

C. Visit the Client.
The Preliminary contacts noted above will help you formulate an initial picture of the case and of our client. But the most important source of information about our client is our client.

Your initial visit with the client is extremely important. Depending on the age and developmental level of our client, your first visit may be a significant information gathering event. More importantly, your first meeting with your client may set the tone for the entire course of your lawyer/client relationship.

Notice how we use the term visit the client. Our general philosophy is that we go to our client not the other way around. First, in most cases, our client is a child who has been recently separated from home. The last thing he or she needs is to be carted off to one more sterile professional's office. It is far easier to begin a relationship in a more child friendly place than the College of Law. And it is helpful to send a message to our clients that we care enough about them to come to their place.

More significantly, we need to see the child in the context of the child's life. We need to observe the placement. No matter how much we may read in reports or hear from other people, nothing measures up to our own first hand observations - both of the placement and of our client in the placement.

That doesn't mean that we cannot take the child away from the placement - to a park or a schoolyard or to McDonald's or Eegee's to have some private time. On the contrary, physically getting away from the placement may help the child open up a little. Nevertheless, we should personally observe the placement if at all possible.

1) Planning the visit.
Every time you see your child/client, you will be part of a dual assessment. On the one hand, you will be obtaining valuable information from your client about the facts of the dependency and about your client's legal and personal needs. At the same time, your client will be assessing and developing a relationship with you.

In your very first visit with the child, you need to have realistic and limited expectations of what you can accomplish. For a very young child, your expectations will be less that they might be for an older and more interactive child. You may want to consider number of things before deciding whether or not you want to make some of these goals a part of your very first visit with your child/client.

Before undertaking your first visit with the child/client, we strongly suggest that you review the materials assigned in class on interviewing and questioning children. The ABA Handbook on Questioning Children: A Linguistic Perspective is an excellent source of information about the developmental considerations in interviewing a child/client.⁽³⁾ You might also want to re-read the chapters in Binder, Bergman, and Price on active listening and questioning.⁽⁴⁾

In any event, we recommend that you consider the following in assessing what you wish to accomplish by your first interview (or interviews with your child/client) .

a. Establishing a relationship with the child.
First impressions mean a lot. Establishing a relationship with the child/client is a critical phase in your long term attorney/client relationship with that child.

You might want to think about how to initially put the child at ease. For younger children you might bring a coloring book and crayons, food, etc, perhaps even use the polaroid camera from the Clinic office. If you use the polaroid, be mindful of our client's privacy. You can certainly take a picture and leave it with the child. However asking to keep a picture can be threatening to the child. There are very few uses that we have for a picture on the first visit.

Sometimes, we have asked our clients who do not want to go to court if they would like us to take a picture to show to the judge. The judges actually appreciate it - they rarely get to see the children they oversee. But we rarely request a picture for the judge on the first visit. We wait until we have a more solid relationship with the client.

Depending on the child's age, you may want to try to explain what an attorney does and why you are there in the first place. For older children, it is important that you explain the concepts of confidentiality and privilege to help build some trust between you and your client. In that regard, remember that privilege only applies where the conversation with your client is private. More practically, it is difficult for a child to open up to a lawyer if others are in on the conversation. It is also important that you explain that your job is to advocate their decisions not your own.

In some circumstances you may need to be a little assertive about privacy. The placement caretaker may, naturally, want to protect this child. The child has, after all, been placed there for a reason. And you are just some stranger coming into their space. Often, the caretakers hover about - with all good intentions.

It is certainly okay for the caretaker to be close by for a little while as you are introduced to your client and begin to establish a comfort zone. However, at some point you may need to explain confidentiality and privilege to the caretaker so that you and your client can have a private conversation.

Establishing a relationship with a child is not always easy -especially for older children. Each of you will have different methods for breaking the ice. You need to trust your instincts. However, we suggest two rules. First, always tell your client the truth. There is nothing that undermines trust between an adult and a child more than the feeling on the child's part that the adult is not being straight up.

That doesn't mean that you have to answer every question. You don't. But when you do give an answer or offer information, be accurate and honest. It also means that if you say something to a client or make any promises, make sure that you carry them out.

The second rule is to listen to the client. There is nothing that turns a child, especially a teenager, off quicker than the feeling that they are being talked to and that nobody is listening to them. Take a little extra time to make sure that you listen to the things that your child/client has to say.

b. Gathering Information..
Certainly a significant part of any visit is gathering as much information as possible to help you assess the situation. But don't be limited to the verbal facts that you can elicit from a child. Look around, observe the child's surroundings. Assess the child's emotional maturity, knowledge and capacity, medical needs, and general health. Take away from this meeting as much as you can of the unspoken pieces of information by observing the child carefully.

c. Giving Information.
Part of your relationship with the child is to give the information to help your client start to make some initial decisions. If the child is able to understand, tell him or her what the proceeding is about. Answer his or her questions if you can. And if you cannot answer questions right away, let the child know that you will get back to him or her - and do it.

d. Decision Making.
You and your client may have to make a number of decisions. You may want to consider whether some of those can be made at the first visit. These decisions may include whether you are not you are going to act as an attorney if the child lacks capacity. Do you need to act as a guardian ad litem or request a guardian ad litem? Is the child in safe circumstances? Should the child attend the hearing? Can you elicit or otherwise figure out the child's preferences for the short term considerations of placement, visitation, or elements of a case plan.

You do not have to make all decisions at once. Your first visit with the child, although important, should never be your last visit with the child. Take the time to get to know your child/client . Visit as frequently as it makes sense to help develop a relationship.

e. Assessing Special Needs.

Although we may not be experts in all areas, sometimes we may notice that our child clients have special needs. For example, does the child look healthy or sickly? Are there obvious dental problems? Does the child behave in an unusual manner?

If you note something unusual [or even if you don't] you may want to follow up with a few questions to the caretaker to see if he or she has noticed the same thing or some other area of concern.

D. After the Visit
Once you have completed the visit, write down all of your thoughts. Note taking is very difficult when visiting the child/client. It is distracting, and it's often disturbing to the child that you are talking to that you are taking notes. With that in mind, immediately after your visit, write down not only the data and the information you've gathered but your impressions and your thoughts as well and any follow up that you think may be necessary. .

Your thoughts may change over time as will your impressions. Nevertheless it always helps to keep a contemporaneous record of your thoughts. Those records will be useful as you reassess what is happening with your child/client over the course of the dependency.

Second, go to Step 3 of the planning process. Ask yourself "Did I accomplish what I set out to do? Why or Why not?" In answering those questions, reassess the situation from two perspectives. From the lawyer-client perspective, decide if you need to schedule a second visit or implement some other follow up action.

From your own perspective, take the time to ask yourself, "What did I learn from this experience?" Remember our Clinic theme. Reflection is where the real learning takes place.

2. How Do I Determine My Client's Position?

Perhaps it is appropriate at this point to offer a few more thoughts about determining your client's position for the Model Court as well as for other future hearings.

A. When your client is capable of articulating a position.
Determining your client's position is not a passive process. You must do more than just ask your client what he or she wants. An important part of being an effective lawyer is preparing your clients to make the best decision for themselves. An effective lawyer for children actively counsels clients before decisions get made.

There are a number of theories on how to counsel clients to make the best decision for themselves.⁽⁵⁾ Most of them contain the following common elements:

1). Get to know your client.
We repeat this theme often. The only way to make sure that you accurately determine your client's real position is to get to know that child in his or her own context.⁽⁶⁾

2) Establish a working relationship which includes a basic trust.
For younger children, it may be that all you can reasonable hope for is to establish a comfort zone. For older children, you may need to communicate a basic appreciation and understanding of the principles of confidentiality and loyalty. Whatever you do, trust implies being honest with your clients and always keeping whatever promises you make to them.

3) Make sure your client has all the relevant factual information.
It is your obligation as a lawyer to keep them informed. You will be the one who receives disclosures from CPS and their parents; you know the schedule of events; you independently investigate.

It is not an easy task to keep your client informed. Passing on information is the kind of artful task that should be well planned in consultation with your faculty supervisor.

First, you must pass on information in a way that your client can understand. That often means simplifying data into developmentally appropriate and absorbable pieces. Simplifying never means that you paint a false picture, however. For example, if a mother is in the hospital for cancer treatment you might say "your mother is sick and in the hospital." You would never say; "your mother is on vacation and won't be home for a while." Simplifying does mean that you communicate at a level and using concepts and language that your client can understand.⁽⁷⁾

Second, you must be conscious of the emotional impact when your client receives negative information about his or her family. On the one hand, children often know much more than adults think they know. Even preverbal children can sense when something is not right with their parents.

Nevertheless, there are situations where a child's attorney, in trying to keep the child client fully informed, is placed in the extremely awkward position of being the bearer of negative news. Perhaps you have information that the child should know and should have been told to the child a long time ago by his or her parents. Coming from you, the information could be devastating. Coming from the parents at the appropriate time might have been just fine. Perhaps you have the kind of information a child ought never to know. Perhaps, in delivering the news, the trust relationship between attorney and client is in peril.

The ABA Standards and the Ethical Rule 1.14 give us quite a bit of leeway in delivering potentially damaging information to our clients. The rule allows us to consult with experts such as the clients therapist. It also allows us to withhold information under certain circumstances. But the rule does place the responsibility on us to make intelligent and thoughtful decisions about how much and in what manner we keep our clients informed - balancing the need to help our clients make good decisions with our desire to avoid harming our own clients.

4) Identify Alternatives

Part of your role as counselor is to help your client identify the available alternatives. Identifying alternatives can be a joint effort with your client. For example, if the issue is placement, your client may be able to name possible relatives or friends who might be willing and able to help. Through your own research you can confirm the relative's willingness and qualifications. Or, by talking with other family members, you might become aware of other possibilities to present to your client Working together with your client, you can generate a maximum number of alternative choices.

5) Explore the consequences of each alternative.
Identifying choices is important. But you must also help your client understand the consequences of each choice. Will living with Aunt Marie mean changing schools? How might moving out of state to live with Dad impact the case plan to return to Mom?

As attorneys, one of our most significant functions is to help our clients see clearly the long and short term consequences of their choices. Exploring consequences is not qualitative. It is geared towards making sure that our clients see clearly what each alternative means to them. Take the time to explore those consequences in light of your clients needs.

6) Help the client decide - offer advice when appropriate.

The final stage is to help our clients decide. Once they are fully informed of the facts, of the law, of the alternatives and of their consequences, our clients can make more intelligent choices. At this point, while the choices are theirs to make, it is perfectly appropriate to offer your advice about the better alternatives.

Both the ethical rules and the ABA Standards not only allow us but encourage us to offer our clients advice. Advice can be legal advice but it can also be practical or even moral advice.⁽⁸⁾⁽⁹⁾

Offering advice to a child can be powerful and should be exercised with caution to make sure that our advice does not overpower our client's free choice. As the ABA Standards comment:

"A lawyer must remain aware of the power dynamics inherent in adult/child relationships. . . On one hand, the lawyer has a duty to ensure that the child client is given the information necessary to make an informed decision, including advice and guidance. On the other hand, the lawyer has a duty not to overbear the will of the child."⁽¹⁰⁾

As you give advice, assess yourself you make sure that your advice is helpful but not coercive. For one author's very thoughtful and thorough discussion of the decision-making process, see Chapters 3 and 5 of Professor Jean Koh Peters book on representing children in the Clinic library.⁽¹¹⁾

B. When Your Client is Not Capable of Articulating a Position.
When your client is not capable of articulating a position, you should first attempt to figure out a position from your client's conduct and situation. Essentially, you should try to ask yourself the question, "if my client were able to tell me what he or she is thinking, what would that be?" IF, you can answer that question one way or the other from what you know about your client, then you should try to advocate for that position.⁽¹²⁾

If you cannot determine what your child's position would be, then you should assume the role of Guardian Ad Litem and advocate for the client's best interests consistent with our appointment under the Pima County contract.

3. Review The Petition, Temporary Orders and the Court Report.

A. The Petition
As part of Model Court procedures, CPS must file and serve a petition alleging the grounds for the dependency and for the removal of the child.⁽¹³⁾ In addition, CPS must Prepare a report for the Court.⁽¹⁴⁾ The two documents serve two different purposes.

The petition serves as the jurisdictional document. Filing a petition invokes the Court's power. The petition also provides the basic due process notice to the parents and the child. Accordingly, the petition must contain the basic allegations of the

dependency.⁽¹⁵⁾ In addition, the petition serves as the State's application for temporary custody. When CPS removes a child, that act must be ratified by the Court in order for the State to retain custody of the child. ⁽¹⁶⁾

Because the petition also serves as an ex parte application for temporary custody, Arizona ethical rules require that the document contain all of the pertinent facts -- including those adverse to the petitioner's position.⁽¹⁷⁾ Consequently, the petition often appears to be a rambling document full of denials and contrary information. For example, a petition might allege that the parent uses cocaine. The petition might also contain a statement that the parent denies all drug use.

Unlike a standard civil complaint, therefore, the petition is rarely drafted as a document with short, individually numbered paragraphs which can be admitted or denied by the responding party. Indeed, in the Juvenile Court, none of the responding parties are required to file an Answer or other formal reaction to the petition⁽¹⁸⁾. Instead, unless the parent knowingly and intelligently admits the allegations, the court will assume a general denial of all material allegation in the petition⁽¹⁹⁾.

The petition must be personally served on the parents unless they cannot be located. Then the petition can be served by certified or registered mail or by publication.⁽²⁰⁾ Because of the Model Court time constraints, the petition is rarely served before the Model Court Hearing. Instead, the petition is generally served on the parents in Court on the record during the Preliminary Protective Hearing.

We will usually be given a copy of the petition a few days in advance of the initial Model Court block. However, that delivery does not meet the standards for service of process. Accordingly, the Assistant Attorney General will formally serve us in court, as the child's attorney, at the same time the parents are served.

A sample petition is included in the Appendix.

B. Temporary Orders
When the petition is filed, the Court will also issue temporary orders.⁽²¹⁾These orders will include an order granting temporary custody to the state, an order appointing us as counsel for the children, an order authorizing the state to provide medical and other care; and an order requiring that the child remain in the State of Arizona unless authorized by the Court.

The latest procedures in the Model Court require that the temporary orders be issued as part of an "in chambers" minute entry. A minute entry is a written record of all court actions made by the Court Clerk. An in chambers minute entry means that the orders were not issued in open court but privately by the Judge.

A sample temporary orders minute entry is included in the Appendix.

C. Court Report
The report to the court is prepared by the CPS intake worker.⁽²²⁾ The CPS report will include all of the information obtained by CPS to date relating to the allegations in the petition as well as information necessary to make decisions about placement, visitation and the case plan. The court report will, of necessity, contain hearsay statements as well as refer to other reports and records. The report will be the clearest statement for us of CPS's initial position on most matters.

The court report should also include a Preliminary case plan for services to the child and the family. Unfortunately, because of the shortened time periods of the Model Court, the initial case plan is a computer generated product that often attempts to be one size fits all. We have to carefully read the case plan to make sure that it suits the needs of our client. We will discuss the case plan more fully below.

A sample Court Report is included in the Appendix.

To sum up, in the brief period of time before the Model Court Block, we have much work to do. The following is a short check list of things to do. At the end of this Handbook in Appendix I, we have included an informational checklist to guide you in your interview with your client, preparation for the hearing and organization of your file.

D. Checklist:
1) Talk with Intake Worker.
2) Contact Parents' Attorneys
3) Contact Placement
4) Visit Placement
5) Visit with Child
6) Review Petition
7) Review DES Report
8) Review Proposed Case Plan
9) Determine the child's positions, if any.

III. Planning for the Model Court Hearing:
Assuming that you have gathered all the information that you can, it is time to formulate your plan for the Model Court Hearing. By this time, you should have observed at least one Model Court Hearing. Yours will follow the same basic process.

Before looking at substantive issues, you should address whether or not your client wants to come to court. Some children want to be part of the process; others would rather eat lint than go to court. For the younger children, court may be too scary or confusing. For older children, however, going to court may satisfy a need to know what is going on; to see things for themselves.

Some children may want to go to court only to meet the judge and get a sense of place. If the latter is the case, we may be able to make arrangements for the child to meet the Judge on a more informal basis independent of the Model Court.

The Statutes allow us to bring our clients to the Pre-hearing Conference⁽²³⁾ and to Preliminary Protective Hearing⁽²⁴⁾ in the court's discretion. The practice at Juvenile Court is to routinely allow the children to attend the Pre-hearing Conference but to allow attendance at the PPH only if nobody objects. In any event, if we are going to bring our clients, we should notify the Judge and the other parties as much in advance as possible.

Our experience has been that others [usually not the Judges who have encouraged us to bring our older clients] may get upset if we bring our clients. Some Intake workers [especially those who have seen first hand what the children have been through] feel that our clients may be too fragile to hear some of the ugly things being said about their families. Others have expressed that the child's Presence changes the dynamics and people won't feel as free to speak their minds. Still others have said that the children get confused and angry at a court process that is hard to figure out.

Going to court also means contact with the parents. For some children, that may be a benefit; for others that may be harmful - especially if there are allegation of serious abuse.

All of these concerns can have merit and we should discuss them with our clients before making a final decision. Nevertheless, if a child wants to be in court, we should take every available steps to ensure their participation.

In planning the Model Court Hearing, remember the three basic topics at issue in the Pre-hearing Conference and the Preliminary Protective Hearing:

    1. Initial Placement
    2. Visitation
    3. Initial Case Plan [services for the child and the family]

1. Initial Placement.
If our client has a preference for placement we should be prepared to express that preference and to have enough information to make a meaningful argument for the client's position. Often the child's preference is to return to mother or father. If so, it is important that we understand the parent's situation so that we can informatively argue for a return. We should also be prepared to advocate for a back-up plan if the client's choice is not feasible or not acceptable to the court. Second choices are often all that are available.

If our client has no position or no alternative to the parents, we should nevertheless insist on sufficient information to make sure that the placement is safe and healthy from our client's point of view.

If we suggest a placement, CPS will demand the right to make a home study of the placement if it is not a licensed foster home. Home studies take time. Therefore, if we have any suggestions, we should make them as early as possible - even before the hearing if possible. Because home studies take time, we cannot reasonably expect that our placement choice will be instantaneously adopted at the Pre-hearing Conference.

The following are some questions to consider in any placement for our clients:

1. Will the placement provide a safe, clean and nurturing home for our client?
2. Is our client familiar with the placement? And is that a positive or a negative?
3. If there is more than one child, will the placement require that siblings be separated?
4 Will the placement make it harder or easier for our clients to visit with their parents?
5. Are there other children at the placement? If so, how will that affect our clients?
6. Will our client be able to stay in the same school?
7. Will our client be able to access services from this placement?
8. How long will our client be able to stay at the placement? Will our client be forced to move at some point?
9. Can the placement afford to keep this child?

    Sibling placement.
We often are assigned cases with more than one child. We have had cases with as many as seven in one family. In many multi-children situation, it becomes apparent from the first meeting with our clients that our sibling clients are extremely attached to each other. For many abused or neglected children, their brothers and sisters are the only people they feel attached to or that they can count on.

Sibling attachment and separation are no minor issues. It is hard enough to be removed from one's parents. To be separated from brothers and sisters can be equally or even more traumatic.

Unfortunately, as you might imagine, CPS has a very difficult time finding placements that will keep brothers and sisters together. The foster care system is very lucky when it finds a placement that will take a group of siblings. Despite that difficulty, if our clients need to be together, we should advocate as strongly as possible for a placement that keeps them together.

2. Visitation:
Unless there is a serious abuse allegation or unless our clients insist otherwise, children who have been removed from their homes need to see their parents. Visits should be as frequent and as long in duration as possible. The child-parent bond is not easily strengthened if the children and parents do not have frequent contact.

There are two type of visitation: supervised and unsupervised. In unsupervised visits, the parent simply takes the child for a specified period of time. No monitoring is required.

Supervised visitation is necessary when the visiting parent :

    a. May be a threat to flee with the child;
    b. Is deemed dangerous to the child;
    c. Behaves inappropriately with the child.

Depending on the nature and severity of the perceived problems, supervision may be performed by trained therapists, visitation professionals, other family members or responsible friends. If the allegation is sexual abuse, the Court may insist on visits supervised by CPS in the CPS office. If the allegation is alcohol abuse, it may be sufficient to have visits supervised by a responsible relative who can simply deny visitation if the parent appears intoxicated.

The pros and cons of supervision.
The obvious advantage of supervision in many cases is that it ensures the safety of the child. The Presence of the supervisor can guard against abduction or mistreatment or other inappropriate parental behaviors. In addition, visit supervisors can often provide valuable information for the courts about how the parent relates to the child.

On the other hand, the fact that a stranger is Present can affect the nature of the visit. It is hard to be relaxed when you are being scrutinized. For some parents, the artificial nature of a supervised visit can negatively affect the visit.

The other disadvantages are mostly logistical. Supervisors must be available. Transportation arrangements are different and often more difficult.

As a result, the logistical problems generally mean that children will receive fewer visits of shorter duration when visits are supervised. Fewer, shorter visits usually are not in a child's best interests. We know that reunification is difficult when visits are low quality and infrequent. Nevertheless, when we have reason to be concerned for the health or safety of our clients, we should carefully consider supervised visits.

Under the Model Court procedures, the children have usually had only one visit before the Pre-hearing Conference. In addition, the standard initial CPS case plan offers one visit per week.

For most children, one visit is way too few if not completely unacceptable. If children are very young or have told us that they want to see their parents or miss their parents, we should aggressive assert their rights to additional meaningful visits - even supervised visits. Accordingly, we should not take obstacles at face value. We should examine each obstacle and propose alternatives when we can. Separation and infrequent visits can have a severe negative impact on a child and should be avoided.

On the other hand, if our clients do not want to see one or both parents or if visitation might be dangerous or harmful, we should act accordingly to oppose visitation.

3. Initial Case Plan
Before the Model Court Hearing, you should be given a copy of the proposed case plan. The case plan will outline tasks and responsibilities of all the party participants. The case plan will set out the services to be provided by CPS and to be accepted by the parents and the child.

The initial case plan is just that - a temporary plan for activities between the Present and any disposition. Nevertheless, the initial case plan has enormous consequences.

The first few months of a case plan set the tone for the entire dependency. The first few months will determine if the parents and CPS will have a cooperative working relationship. Attitudes will be established. Postures will be taken. Opportunities may be seized or lost in the first few months. Also, the first few months may be the most traumatic time for the child. Those early months may be the time at which the correct services and the best parental behaviors are most needed.

In addition, the initial case plan, unlike a long term plan, has immediate litigation consequences. Information gleaned as a result of tasks in the initial plan, such as data from psychological evaluations, can be used at trial. Failure to follow the case plan may, by itself, be proof of a dependency. For that reason, parents' attorneys, especially, may take a very guarded approach to the initial case plan.

The initial case plans usually contained three main elements: visitation, assessment services and remedial services.

A. Assessment Services.

1) Assessment of Parents.
We have already discussed visitation. Outside of visitation, the biggest fight is commonly over the assessment services for the parents. Assessment services include psychological evaluations [often referred by the diminutive "psych eval.], random urinalysis ["UA"s or "drops"], specialty evaluations such as alcohol, drug or psycho-sexual evaluations, and physical examinations.

From the Agency and, more often than not, from the child's point of view, it is usually best to complete assessments as early as possible. The sooner we identify parental problems, the sooner we can resolve them. As a result, CPS initial case plans often present a computer generated, one-size fits all, full array of assessment services.

From the parents' point of view, the danger of early assessment of the parent is that the assessment device may provide proof of a dependency where little proof now exists. The assessments may even identify problems of which the state was not aware, thus broadening the scope of the dependency.

Like all other decisions, we should approach assessment services from our client's perspective. What will help our client? That will obviously depend on the situation. If there is an identifiable parental problem, then the assessment services should be directed towards confirming the problem. If the existence of a problem seems evident but the nature of the problem is unclear, then more broad based assessments might be in order.

Having a parent assessed will rarely cause a direct problem for a child. After all, more information can't hurt. However, some assessments, such as regular random urinalysis, require such an investment of time and resources for the parent that there may be some indirect negative consequences. In addition, needless assessments can appear to the parents to be unnecessary obstacles to reunification and can cause resentment.

For that reason, we should carefully scrutinize the shot-gun approach to initial assessments of the parents to ensure that the assessments are necessary and appropriate.

2) Assessment of the Child.
Because everyone's initial focus is family reunification, often the assessment of the child gets lost in the moment. It is our job to make sure that necessary assessments of our clients should not be overlooked.

State law requires that if a child was removed from home because the child is suffering serious physical or emotional damage, CPS must immediately take the child to a medical doctor or psychologist for an examination.⁽²⁵⁾ Sometimes what gets lost in the shuffle is that our clients may need physical, dental or psychological examinations when no apparent serious condition can be observed.

Often our clients come from poverty backgrounds and have not been examined by a doctor or dentist for years. Our clients often suffer from low level malnutrition, tooth decay, allergies or a host of other not-so-obvious physical problems. Sometimes our clients have reacted poorly to the stress of being removed from the home or suffered from mild depression to begin with and need therapeutic help.

If we even suspect there is a problem, we should plan to forcefully advocate that appropriate assessment services for our clients be included in the initial case plan.

Two assessment services are used more often than others and are worthy of mention. They are psychological evaluations and random urinalysis.

a. Psychological Evaluations:
"Psych Evals "come in two parts. The first consists of standardized psychological tests. CPS refers to this as group testing because tests are scheduled for and can be administered to a number of people at once. Currently, parents take a rudimentary intelligence test to see if they have a minimal capacity to work with CPS. They are also given an MMPI personality inventory⁽²⁶⁾ which can be used to red flag psychological disorders. They are also given a child abuse predictor test.

The second part of the evaluation consists of a face to face meeting with a psychologist chosen by CPS. The psychologist then issues a report attempting to diagnose any psychological conditions and recommending a course of treatment. If the psychologist believes there may be an organic or medical problem, the psychologist will recommend that CPS have the parent evaluated by a psychiatrist. Similarly the psychologist may make a referral for a specialized diagnosis out of the normal field of the psychologist.

Both CPS and the Juvenile Court place great stock in psychological evaluations. In nearly all circumstances, recommendations for treatment contained in the psychological evaluation will become part of the permanent case plan.

Parents have often expressed concern that the CPS chosen psychologists are biased because "they know who pays them." And certainly some are better than others at giving accurate diagnoses. Unfortunately the perception of bias is endemic. Most parents cannot afford to hire their own psychologists. As a result, parent chosen evaluators are very rare so the CPS ones are all we have available.

Psychological evaluations can be extremely helpful tools if prepared competently and used appropriately. On the other hand, as the frequent bearers of unhappy news, they can generate angry and resentful reactions on the part of those who feel they have been evaluated unfairly.

b. Random Urinalysis.
In nearly 75% of dependencies, there is an allegation of drug or alcohol abuse. The Juvenile Court takes substance abuse very seriously. There is pretty much a zero tolerance of drug or alcohol use in a dependency proceeding with a substance abuse allegation.

The theory is pretty straightforward. Obviously good parenting and substance abuse do not go hand in hand. More importantly, the Juvenile Court regards any parent who would risk using illegal drugs or alcohol while under the scrutiny of a pending dependency as having demonstrated a fundamental lack of understanding of what it takes to be a parent - that is, putting the child first. Such a parent is deemed to have put him or herself first by using drugs or alcohol when the Court has indicated that there will be a period of zero tolerance.

The way the Court detects drug use is through random urinalysis [also called "UA's" or "drops". The system of random urinalysis works as follows:

    1. Each day the parent telephones a specified number.
    2. The person answering the phone call will inform the parent whether or not he or she must drop on that day.
    3. The parent must then personally appear at one of the urine collection sites before it closes that day [usually by 6:30 pm].
    4. At the collection site, someone will observe the parent giving a urine sample and will take the sample.
    5. The sample will be sent to laboratory in Kansas for testing.
    6. The results will then be sent to the CPS worker who will disclose it to the court and to all parties.

If the parent fails to call on a given day or fails to report when directed, the parent will be considered to have given a "dirty drop" - that is, a sample that is positive for the suspected substance.

If the parent tests positive for a substance, at the very least, the court will order that future visits be supervised until the parent demonstrates that he or she is clean. More likely, a positive test while under the microscope of a dependency proceeding indicates a sufficiently serious problem that treatment will be required.

Parents who test positive often argue that the tests were inaccurate or mistakenly registered a perfectly legitimate chemical in the urine. Moreover, without an expert witness and testimony from one of the lab technicians from Kansas, these tests would hardly meet criteria for admissibility at a dependency trial.

While those arguments are technically possible under some circumstances, our experience indicates that they will be rejected our of hand by the Juvenile Court judges.⁽²⁷⁾ A parent who tests positive for drugs has pretty much guaranteed that the Court will find a dependency based on substance abuse regardless of any evidentiary problems.

The upside of random urinalysis is that it is a very effective way to identify users. The downside is that it poses a tremendous burden on the parents. Transportation may be difficult as many parents have no automobiles and live or work at a great distance from the collection sites. Many parents have to take significant time off of work on less than a day's notice - with employers who have little tolerance for missing work - in order to drop during the limited hours of collection.

Random urinalysis is not an easy burden for a parent. And the Court does not tolerate excuses for missed drops.

A sample urinalysis report is include in the Appendix.

B. Remedial Services.
It is sometimes difficult for an initial case plan to recommend remedial services for the parents at the time of the Model Court Hearing. While CPS may believe such services to be necessary, the need for such services has not yet been established by the Court nor acknowledged by the parents. Parent may be reluctant to agree to such services before trial - especially where accepting the services recognizes the validity of the petition.

Nonetheless, IF a parent agrees to remedial services, that parent will have a head start on reunification - especially where a finding of dependency appears inevitable. Often parents attorneys will candidly advise their clients that, from the known circumstances, the Court will probably declare a dependency. They may then advise their clients that it is in the parent's and the child's best interests to agree to remedial services from the outset.

Not every parent contests services. Many parents recognize their limitations and welcome the help from the state. On the other hand, many parents are angry and resentful at the State's intrusion into their family. Those parents may offer resistance at all fronts.

Typical remedial services include:

1) Parenting Classes
2)Substance Abuse Treatment
3) Individual or Family Counseling
4) Use of a parent aide in the home
5) In-home services such as "Family Builders"

D. Placement of the Child.
1) Out of Home Placement.
We have already discussed some of the factors associate with placement of our clients. If our client has a position, we should be prepared to use those factors to advocate effectively.

We should note, however, that there are certain disqualifying circumstances for nearly all placements. These include:

a. A recent criminal history.
b. Credible allegations of substance abuse for anyone living in the home.
c. Lack of physical space for the child.
d. A pending dependency involving the caretaker.
e. A substantiated allegation of abuse or neglect for anyone living in the home.

2) Temporary Custody.
We should also be prepared for the parent to argue for return of the child and to request an immediate temporary custody hearing. Under the statutory scheme, every parent is entitled to an immediate hearing to determine temporary custody.

In a Temporary Custody Proceeding, the State law has the burden of showing the necessity of keeping the child in care. The standard of proof is whether the State can present sufficient evidence that:

" . . . there is probable cause to believe that continued temporary custody is clearly necessary to prevent abuse or neglect pending the hearing on the dependency petition."⁽²⁹⁾

A temporary custody hearing follows a very particular order.

a. First the State presents its evidence.⁽³⁰⁾
Because this is a probable cause hearing scheduled on relatively short notice, the State can rely on certain types of hearsay⁽³¹⁾. The enumerated forms of hearsay are:

(1) The allegations of a verified⁽³²⁾ petition.
(2) An Affidavit⁽³³⁾
(3) Sworn testimony
(4) The written reports of experts.
(5) CPS reports if the caseworker who make the report is present
(6) Documentary evidence without foundation if foundation will be available at the dependency hearing.
(7) Out of court statements by persons who will be personally available at trial.
(8) Essential witnesses who cannot be physically present at the hearing can testify by telephone in the Judge's discretion.⁽³⁴⁾

b. Probable Cause Finding
At the conclusion of the State's case, the Court must make a finding of whether or not there is probable cause based on the evidence presented by the State⁽³⁵⁾.
 

c. Offer of Proof
The parent or guardian who requested the hearing can then make what is called an offer of proof. An offer of proof is an avowal by the party through counsel that particular witnesses would testify to particular facts or produce particular evidence.⁽³⁶⁾
 

d.  Deciding Sufficiency of Evidence
The Judge must then decide if that evidence would be enough to rebut the Judge's finding of probable cause.⁽³⁷⁾
 

e. Presenting the Evidence
If the evidence would be sufficient to rebut the previous finding, then the Judge would allow the parent to present the evidence.⁽³⁸⁾

f.   Final Ruling on Sufficiency of Evidence
The Court must then make a final ruling about the sufficiency of the evidence to establish probable cause. If there is not sufficient evidence, the Judge must return the child to the parent. If there is probable cause, then the child will stay in State custody as a temporary ward of the court.⁽³⁹⁾

In addition, under Federal Regulations, the Court must make a finding that "reasonable efforts have been made to prevent the child's removal from home". That Federal Law finding can be delayed past the TCH for up to 60 days from the date of the child's removal.⁽⁴⁰⁾

IV. Change of Judge
If, for any reason, a party does not feel comfortable in front of the assigned Judge, that party can file a "Notice of Change of Judge" with the Clerk of the Court. The notice must be filed within five days of the party's receiving notice of that the particular Judge has been assigned to the case. ⁽⁴¹⁾ A party waives the right to a change of judge on request once the party participates in a contested matter or hearing before the Judge.⁽⁴²⁾

A party can also petition to change Judges for "cause" - the cause being personal interest or prejudice on the part of the Judge.⁽⁴³⁾ If the assigned Judge disagrees with the petition, the court will schedule a hearing before a judge other than the challenged Judge.

V. Conduct of the Model Court Hearing
You have formulated a plan for the hearing. What else might you expect? First, expected the unexpected. While we stress planning and more planning, a good lawyer must also be flexible. This is especially true at a hearing like the initial Model Court where there has been no opportunity for formal discovery, where the proceedings are somewhat rushed, and where you have not had the opportunity to meet many of the people involved.

So be prepared to listen and to adjust your plan based on what you hear. That doesn't mean that you should abandon your goals at the first piece of new information. Being flexible simply means that you should be well enough prepared to make minor adjustments while keeping to the basic positions you have worked out.

The Pre-hearing Conference will be very informal. No Judge will be present. Everything is off the record. There is no court reporter or tape recording. All the parties and other participants will sit around a large table. Everyone will sign an attendance sheet.

The facilitator will make introductions and will try to get everyone to participate in the discussion. The facilitator will try to keep people on topic - that is, placement, visitation, and services - and away from interpersonal conflict.⁽⁴⁴⁾ So be polite but feel free to speak your mind or to ask questions within a framework of cooperation.

If all sides can reach agreement, then the facilitator will let the judge know what happened. The parties will proceed to court and the agreements will probably be ratified. If the sides cannot agree, the parties can present argument to the Court in the Preliminary Protective Hearing. Argument will be informal without the court taking testimony - except if there is a hearing for Temporary Custody.

The PPH will be more formal. The Judge's Law Clerk or Bailiff will call us into the courtroom. The courtroom is set up in a semi-circle facing the Bench. The parents and their attorneys will sit on the left facing the Judge. The Intake worker and the Attorney General will sit on the right.⁽⁴⁵⁾ And we will sit in the middle.

To the side of the Judge will be a court clerk who will take minutes of what happens. In front of the Judge will be a court reporter who will make a verbatim record of the proceeding. It is a good idea to write your name on a several pieces of paper to assist the Court Clerk and reporter. Give one copy to the reporter, and two copies to the Clerk so that the Clerk can give one to the Judge. It is not proper protocol to hand documents or exhibits directly to the Judge. Hand them to the Court Clerk or the Bailiff.

When the Judge enters the courtroom, everyone should rise and stay standing until the Judge tells us to be seated. The Judge will then announce the case. Some Judges will then state into the record who is present. Others will ask the parties to announce their presence on the record - usually beginning with the Attorney General.

If non-parties are in the courtroom, the Judge will want them identified for the record as well - including other Clinic students who may be observing.

If you are asked to announce your presence, please stand⁽⁴⁶⁾ and say these three statements:
 

1. "My name is ________. I am with the Child Advocacy Clinic representing _______, the minor child who is [is not] present."

2. "I am appearing under Rule 38(e)." [Some students like to say "I am a 38(e) student"

3. "I am under the supervision of _________________, who is present in the courtroom." Then point in the direction of your supervising attorney.

1. Assignment of counsel for the parents. Up until this point, the parents' attorneys have been assigned on a temporary basis. The parents will present a completed financial affidavit to the Judge who will then determine their eligibility for an assigned attorney. If the parents are eligible, the attorneys will be assigned by the Court at the PPH.⁽⁴⁷⁾

The parents may be assessed the cost of their attorneys.⁽⁴⁸⁾ The cost is set by the County Board of Supervisors.⁽⁴⁹⁾ In Pima County the cost is $750.00. The Judge can waive the assessment or make a partial assessment if the parents are indigent.⁽⁵⁰⁾ If the Judge makes the assessment, payments can be made over time. The parents can appeal the Judge's decision to a court administrator who is empowered to make adjustments.

2. Service of the Petition. The Attorney General will serve a copy of the petition on the parents and on the child's attorney in Court.

There are several other ministerial issues to be addressed by the court. They may come at the beginning or during the course of the hearing. They are:
 

a. Establishing Paternity. The Judge will determine if paternity has been established. If paternity has not been established by Court order or under operation of law, the Judge will ask the parties to take the steps necessary to establish paternity.⁽⁵¹⁾

b. Vacating the Initial Dependency Hearing. If the parents attend the Model Court hearing, there is no need for an initial dependency hearing. If the parents do not show, then the procedure is for them to be served with the petition. Once service has been completed, the parents must attend the initial dependency or the matter can be adjudicated by default.

c. Entering a Denial for the Parents. The parents will be deemed to deny the petition unless they admit to all the allegations. In most PPH's the parents will enter a general denial - even if they eventually intend to admit the petition. Usually, they have not had sufficient time to meet with their lawyers at the PPH for everyone to feel comfortable with an admission with its attendant consequences.

After the preliminary issues are completed, the Court will generally turn to the Attorney General to see if there were any agreements at the Pre-hearing Conference. They will be detailed orally. If the agreements are acceptable, the Court will adopt them. The Court may ask each party if they agree with what the Attorney General says. We should be prepared to make corrections or additions if appropriate.

If the parties have made any changes to the preliminary case plan, the Judge will go over each change in court to make sure that all understand and are in agreement.

If the parties disagree on any subject, the Court may make on the spot decisions. Be prepared to argue your position briefly and concisely.

If there is a need for a temporary custody hearing, the court will begin the hearing then. The TCH may take more than the time allotted. If so, the Judge will continue - that is, adjourn - the hearing to a date within the next five working days.

Finally, at the conclusion of the PPH, the Court will perform three administrative other tasks:
 

a. Schedule the next event.
Unless a parent admits the allegations at the PPH -- a relatively rare event -- the court will schedule at least one other hearing with an eye towards resolving the matter without an adjudication hearing⁽⁵²⁾. There is a strong preference in the Juvenile Court for non-trial resolutions. To that end, Court rules require that the court must schedule a settlement conference or, if appropriate, a mediation.⁽⁵³⁾ The settlement conference or mediation are usually scheduled within the next thirty days. If mediation is chosen, the court will also schedule a status hearing to inform the court of the outcome of the mediation.

Some cases will inevitably go to trial. However, the Judge will not schedule a trial date until after the settlement conference or the mediation.⁽⁵⁴⁾ A trial must be held within 90 days of the date the parent was served with the petition.⁽⁵⁵⁾ The Judge can extend the trial date an additional thirty days for good cause.⁽⁵⁶⁾ Any further extensions must get the approval of the Supreme Court.⁽⁵⁷⁾

b. Make Admonishments.
The Court will routinely make an "admonishment" to the parents that if they fail to show up at any future hearing, mediation or settlement conference that the court may adjudicate their child as dependent and make dispositional orders.⁽⁵⁸⁾

c. Issue an immediate minute entry.
Unlike almost all other hearings, the court will issue an immediate minute entry that will be available to all parties on the same day as the PPH.

1. For brevity purposes, the term "parents" will include custodial guardians unless stated otherwise.

2. In a private dependency, we might receive a petition right away. Unfortunately, in a private dependency we might not learn the name of the investigating worker right away.

3. Walker, Anne Graffam, Handbook On Questioning Children, American Bar Association, 1995.

4. Binder, Bergman & Price, Lawyers as Counselors: A Client Centered Approach, West Publishing, 1991

5. See e.g. Binder, Bergman & Price, Lawyers as Counselors: A Client Centered Approach, West Publishing, 1991; Cochran, DiPippa & Peters, The Counselor-at-law : a Collaborative Approach to Client Interviewing and Counseling, New York : Matthew Bender, 1999; Shaffer & Elkins, Legal Interviewing and Counseling in a Nutshell, West Group, 1997

6. For an excellent discussion of the child in context, see chapter 1, Koh Peters, Jean, Representing Children in Child Protective Proceedings: Ethical and Practical Considerations, Lexis Law Publishing, 1997.

7. See Walker, Anne Graffam, Handbook On Questioning Children, American Bar Association, 1995.

8. Rule 2.1 AZ RPC . "In representing a client, a lawyer shall exercise independent professional judgment and render candid advice. In rendering advice, a lawyer may refer not only to law but to other considerations such as moral, economic, social and political factors, that may be relevant to the client's situation."

9. B-4 ABA Standards (First Commentary) "As in any other lawyer/client relationship, the lawyer may express his or her assessment of the case, the best position for the child to take, and the reasons underlying such recommendation"

10. B-4 ABA Standards (First Commentary)

11. Koh Peters, Jean, Representing Children in Child Protective Proceedings: Ethical and Practical Considerations, Lexis Law Publishing, 1997.

12. See section on "Role of the Child's Lawyer" in this handbook.

13. ARS 8-841

14. See Pima County Model Court Protocol

15. The petition must contain a factual statement, with reasonable particularity, of the acts, conduct or conditions which bring the child within the jurisdiction of the court. Mere recital of the statutory definition is insufficient. Rule 4, RPJC; In Pima County Juv. Act. No. J-46735, 25 Ariz. App. 424, 544 P.2d 298 (1976)

16. ARS § 8-822

17. Rule 3.3 (4)(d) AZ RPC "(d) In an ex parte proceeding, a lawyer shall inform the tribunal of all material facts known to the lawyer which will enable the tribunal to make an informed decision, whether or not the facts are adverse."

18. Rule 15(a)4 Arizona Rules of Procedure for the Juvenile Court

19. Id., ARS §8-843

20. Rules 4.1 and 4.2 Arizona Rules of Civil Procedure, Rule 15(a) Arizona Rules of Procedure for the Juvenile Court

21. Rule 15(b) Arizona Rules of Procedure for the Juvenile Court

22. ARS § 8-802(C)(7)(b)

23. ARS 8-823

24. ARS 8-824

25. ARS § 8-821(b)

26. "The Minnesota Multiphasic Personality is . . . an empirically-based assessment of adult psychopathology. The MMPI-2 instrument, provided by NCS, is the standard that mental health professionals use to help measure psychopathology across a broad range of client settings. The MMPI-2 instrument is used by clinicians in hospitals, clinics, counseling programs, and private practice to assist with the diagnosis of mental disorders and the selection of an appropriate treatment method." Source NCS Pearson advertising literature.

27. The Clinic library has literature about the testing procedures commonly used by CPS. The library also contains a copy of the American Bar Association Judicial Benchbook on Drugs and Families.

28. Some case plans call for the parent to obtain employment. The better practice is for the case plan to simply state that the parent must obtain a legal source of income. For some parents, obtaining employment may be difficult or even impossible. For others, out of home employment may be unnecessary or adverse to the child's interests. The call for poor people to work out of the home when raising young children is a central part of the recent welfare "reforms". One might question the trend to make poor persons leave their young children in child care while encouraging more wealthy parents to stay at home and nurture their children. Regardless where you stand on this issue, if the parent is seeking employment it is in our clients' interests to make sure there is quality child care if the parents are working.

29. ARS §8-824(F). In making a probable cause finding the Court may refer to the grounds for removing a child in the first instance. Those are set forth in ARS § 8-821 B:

"B. A child may be taken into temporary custody by a peace officer or a child protective services worker if temporary custody is clearly necessary to protect the child because the child is either:

1. Suffering or will imminently suffer abuse or neglect.

2. Suffering serious physical or emotional damage that can only be diagnosed by a medical doctor or psychologist."

30. Rule 16.1 (d) Arizona RPJC

31. Rule 16.1 (c) Arizona RPJC

32. A verified document is one in which someone swears under oath that the information contained in the document is true. All dependency petitions must be verified. ARS 8-822.

33. An affidavit is a written statement sworn to under oath.

34. Rule 19.2 Arizona RPJC

35. Rule 16.1 (d) Arizona RPJC

36. Id.

37. Id.

38. Id.

39. Rule 16.1 (e) Arizona RPJC

40. 45 C.F.R. § 1356.21(b)

41. Rule 20.1(c)

42. Rule 20.1(c)(4)

43. Rule 20.1(b)

44. Rule 16 (d) Arizona RPJC

45. If one or more parents are in jail or prison, they will be accompanied by a deputy sheriff. For security reasons, the deputy may change the seating arrangements.

46. Some attorneys stand up when they speak in the Juvenile Court. Some don't. We prefer to be more formal and to stand -- except when the Judge [some do] specifically ask people not to stand. Which Judges do not want people to stand? Pay attention.

47. ARS § 8-821.

48. ARS § 8-821(G)

49. ARS § 8-821(F)

50. ARS § 8-821(G)

51. Paternity can be established in a number of ways in Arizona. If the parents were married at the time the child was born, paternity will be presumed. If the parties were not married, the parties can both sign an affidavit of paternity which can be the basis of a court order. Or the parties can have a contested proceeding. If the matter is contested, the parties are entitled to genetic marker blood test which often settles the matter without a trial. A sample paternity affidavit is in the Appendix.

52. An adjudication hearing is a trial on the allegations in the dependency petition.

53. Rule 16.2(e) Arizona RPJC

54. Rule 16.2(h) Arizona RPJC

55. Rule 17 Arizona RPJC

56. Rule 17.1(c) Arizona RPJC

57. Rule 17.2 Arizona RPJC

58. ARS § 8-826; Rule 16.2(e) Arizona RPJC "Admonishment is the word used in the Pima County Juvenile Court. It is our opinion that admonishment is an unduly harsh term - implying reprimand or chastisement for parents who have not, as yet anyway, been found to have committed any wrongful acts. It is one more occasion to ponder the power of words. ARS § 8-826 uses the word "instruct"; Rule 16.2 merely uses the word "advise".