Courts have an important role to play in overseeing child protection cases. Tracking the life cycle of a CPS case, this paper proposes reforms to better safeguard the rights of families and improve outcomes for children.
Key points:
- The number of children in the Texas foster care system rose by nearly 20% between 2010 and 2019.
- Forcibly separating a child from their family, even for a short time, is inherently traumatic and can result in long-term harm.
- As guardians of individual rights, courts have the high duty of safeguarding the liberty of families from abuse at the hands of government and protecting children from abuse at the hands of caregivers.