WITHDRAWN: Improving Outcomes for Child Welfare Involved Children: Developing Interdisciplinary Trauma-Informed Courtroom Practice

Background/Rationale: While the social work profession has shifted towards trauma-informed approaches across client systems and constituencies, the legal field overwhelmingly has not adopted trauma-informed lawyering and courtroom practices. Child welfare attorneys typically have high caseloads, limited funding, and often lack necessary technical support and training. Similarly, social workers are frequently asked to provide expert testimony in court and can play an instrumental role in advocating for their clients best interests in these settings. This presentation focuses on an innovative interdisciplinary mock trial simulation developed by law and social work faculty to foster mutual learning between disciplines. Mock trial programs are a unique and essential part of law schools and provide students with an opportunity to increase their trial advocacy skills. They typically: (i) are competitive, (ii) focus on criminal/civil not juvenile cases, (iii) have lengthy case packets, and (iv) are not interdisciplinary in nature. The goal of this project was to develop an interdisciplinary trauma-informed approach to mock trial simulations that improves knowledge and skills related to sexual abuse, child welfare, and trauma-informed practices in juvenile courtrooms.

Methods: Established in January 2016, The Wilbanks Child Endangerment and Sexual Exploitation Clinic at the UGA School of Law is the nation’s first legal clinic dedicated to representing survivors of sexual abuse. In August 2017 the UGA School of Social Work launched a new partnership to develop and refine a model for trauma-informed courtroom practices. As part of this mock trial simulation, law and social work students worked together to execute a termination of parental rights mock trial simulation based on a 100-page case packet developed specifically for this project focusing on a child placed into protective custody following allegations of sexual abuse, domestic violence and neglect. Ten students attended three intensive classes featuring readings and lectures by legal, child welfare and mental health practitioners focusing on: (i) sexual abuse and domestic violence; (ii) juvenile court and the child welfare system, (iii) trauma-informed care and trauma-informed lawyering, and (iv) collaborating together to develop skills in trial advocacy and expert testimony.

Results: Based on written evaluations and a debriefing session at the conclusion of this experience, the following themes emerged:

1. Students reported that this experience was an engaging, valuable and effective learning opportunity that will inform their future practice.
2. Increased practice skills related to the: (a) impact of trauma and trauma-informed practice, (b) rules of evidence and courtroom procedures, (c) child welfare legal process, and (d) roles and responsibilities of legal and social work professionals.
3. Increased confidence supporting and empowering child welfare involved children and families in the courtroom
4. Increased comfort cooperating with and working alongside professional stakeholders in other disciplines.

Conclusions: This example highlights the potential of an innovative partnership that aims to strengthen lines of communication and better prepare future professionals. By sharing our process, we hope to expand our individual and collective understanding about how developmentally sensitive, evidence informed and trauma-informed practices can become standard procedure when representing child welfare involved children and families in the courtroom.