If someone tells you that you don’t need to hire an attorney, that may be just the time to consult with one. Too often foster parents who feel misled or unheard in the foster care system are advised or threatened not to hire or consult with an attorney. Foster parents are just the babysitters, after all, right? Wrong.
While the ideal situation will see foster children returned swiftly to a healing and nurturing family environment, many times there are delays of the bureaucracy, the courts, and the natural parents’ good behavior — and the children are the ones left in the lurch.
When the months stretch into years and the foster family feels unheard and taken for granted; when the child needs permanency and some hard decisions to give them a safe and stable home; when a foster family needs some help — for their sake and for their foster child; then it may be time for some extra help. Don’t be bullied by the government or agencies into thinking you’re not allowed to have an attorney.
In this memo, we explain that foster parents have the right to legal counsel, the right to be heard, and the right to be treated with respect and dignity. Call us today if you think you need that extra voice in your corner.
Memo: Foster Parents’ Right to Legal Counsel.
~Ben DuPré, Esq.
Alabama Adoption Home Study Requirements