It is the mission of The Alliance for Children's Rights' to protect the rights of abused, neglected or impoverished children.

Organization Description:

The Alliance's efforts are focused in three areas: direct legal services and representation, education and community training, and advocacy. The Alliance provides legal services, advocacy and advice in the areas of foster care and foster children's adoptions, probate legal guardianships, special education, emancipation, public benefits, denial of medical treatment or healthcare benefits, and advocacy on behalf of transitioning youth. Clients include runaway and emancipating youth, relative and non-relative caregivers, children with educational, physical and/or emotional disabilities, siblings, and parents with terminal illnesses. Many of our clients are non-English speaking.

The Alliance staff includes lawyers, social workers, medical health specialists, paralegals and advocates supplemented by numerous pro bono attorneys and volunteers who donate their time to help disadvantaged children and ensure their voices are heard.

Pro Bono Project Descriptions:

The Alliance recruits, trains, and supports pro bono attorneys from major law firms, in house corporate counsel, and private practices to represent children in poverty, and has pro bono opportunities in each of its project areas.

While the majority of volunteer opportunities at The Alliance are for attorneys who provide pro bono legal services to our clients, there are several ways for non-lawyers to get involved, particularly in our Special Education, Foster Care Benefits, and NEXT STEP Transitioning Youth Programs.

Adoption
The Foster Children's Adoption Program works to finalize hundreds of foster children's adoptions each year. Many of these adoptions are finalized through the Adoption Day Program, which was started by The Alliance and is now a National model to promote foster care adoption. We expedite adoptions by working with the Los Angeles Children's Court, The Department of Children and Family Services, and minor's attorneys to remove barriers to adoption in individual cases. We also work with DCFS, the court, and other Los Angeles child welfare stakeholders on systemic reform of the adoption process and DCFS policies. Attorneys seeking to work with this program would have the opportunity to take on cases representing adoptive parents in finalizing their foster child adoption by completing their adoption finalization documents and representing them at the adoption finalization hearing. Adoption cases require a time commitment of approximately 10 hours over a period of two-to-three months, and pro bono attorneys are trained on adoption finalization.

Foster Care Benefits & Children's Court Advocacy
The Foster Care Benefits Program works with minor's attorneys, social workers, judicial officers, and foster care providers to ensure that all children in the foster care system receive the monthly financial benefits to which they are entitled. We represent foster care providers at administrative fair hearings on inappropriate benefits denials. We also work with the Department of Children and Family Services to obtain the appropriate specialized care rates and services for the many children in foster care with special medical and emotional needs. Attorneys working with this program would advocate for benefits and services on behalf of the children, help acquire the evidence necessary to bring matters to trial, prepare hearing requests and briefs, and represent clients at administrative fair hearings. Benefits cases require a time commitment of approximately 35 to 45 hours over a period of approximately three months, and pro bono attorneys are trained in benefits advocacy. Individuals interested in this field do not need to be licensed in California to undertake this advocacy.

Special Education
The Special Education Program assists foster children with disabilities access appropriate educational placements and support services. Local school districts are under a mandate to provide each special education student with a free appropriate public education ("FAPE") tailored to meet the unique needs of each student. Children in foster care with disabilities face unique challenges within the special education system. For example, because of numerous foster care placement changes, many of their important school documents may be lost or they are often not tested appropriately or often enough for their service providers to have an adequate understanding of their needs. In addition, these children are more likely than other students with disabilities to have inappropriate educational programs due to not having a consistent and knowledgeable caregiver to successfully advocate for their needs. Because of this dual disadvantage of being a student with a disability who is also in the foster care system, many of these children are in desperate need of advocacy to ensure that they have appropriate educational programs. Pro bono attorneys have the opportunity to represent children in obtaining an Individualized Education Program (IEP). Special education cases require a time commitment of approximately 25 to 35 hours over a period of approximately three months, and pro bono attorneys are trained in special education advocacy. Individuals interested in this field do not need to be licensed in California to undertake this advocacy.

Transitioning Youth & Mentoring
Every year over 1,500 youth "age out" of the Los Angeles foster care system without the support system of a family or parents to help them transition into adulthood. Of the many obstacles these youth face, untangling outstanding legal barriers is a vital first step. Through The Alliance's NextSTEP Program, which focuses on the transitioning youth population, attorneys can help these youth overcome these barriers by representing these youth in a variety of legal matters. The wide array of topics faced by these youth includes identity theft, tenants' rights, income tax preparation, accessing public benefits, understanding how to buy or lease a car, sealing juvenile records, clearing tickets and warrants, and understanding contracts.

Guardianship
The Guardianship Program represents the over 300,000 children in Los Angeles County living with non-parent caregivers. Guardianship not only affords the caregivers legal authority over a child's educational and medical welfare and allows them access to available financial benefits, it provides vital emotional and physical security to children who are in desperate need of a stable, caring placement. Legal guardianship also protects children and caregivers from the possibility of an unfit or even dangerous parent removing a child from their care. Pro bono attorneys assist caregivers in completing guardianship paperwork and represent the caregivers at their guardianship hearings. Cases are extensively screened and all information necessary for completion of the guardianship case is acquired prior to placement by The Alliance. All guardianship matters placed with pro bono attorneys are uncontested, unless otherwise requested by attorney. Guardianship cases typically require a time commitment of approximately 15 to 25 hours over a period of two-to-three months, and pro bono attorneys are trained on guardianship matters.

Supplemental Security Income (SSI)

SSI is a welfare program administered by the Social Security Administration that provides financial assistance to individuals who are too disabled to work. A recent state law, sponsored by The Alliance, requires the Department of Children and Family Services to screen all children in foster care for potential SSI eligibility and to make applications on their behalves when appropriate so that SSI is in hand when their foster care cases close. The SSI project works with social workers, minor's attorneys, and judicial officers to ensure that the screenings and applications are done, and further represents the youth through an administrative appeal process when the applications have been inappropriately denied by the Social Security Administration. Pro bono attorneys volunteering with this program will have the opportunity to advocate on behalf of these youth at administrative law hearings in order to establish that their disabilities in fact qualify them for SSI. SSI cases require a time commitment of approximately 10 to 35 hours and pro bono attorneys are trained in SSI advocacy.