Meet with your client before court! It never ceases to amaze me how often parent attorneys put off having critical conversations with their client until the day of court. I know the argument-there is no time, child welfare clients are hard to track down, etc. But are such excuses really valid? Would an attorney defending a criminal case make such arguments and not expect repercussions , whether on appeal on a claim for ineffective assistance of counsel, or before the State Bar?
Meeting with your client before court can help you to better represent your client’s position. Perhaps your client kept an appointment for a substance abuse assessment and is now receiving outpatient treatment. By learning about this ahead of time, you can present the court with exhibits that are favorable to keeping a plan of reunification on the table. On the other hand, the last place you want to find out about a client’s big slip up is the day of court. By learning about the facts early the attorney has the latitude to develop effective damage control which may keep DSS working with your client just a little longer. Finally, meeting with your client consistently and regularly outside of court shows your client you are investing in them. This may lead to better performance by the client and it may get them to show up to court more consistently.
Setting an expectation in person, face to face, achieves better client outcomes more often than not. Zealous representation is not a solo act, it requires a partnership between the advocate and the client built upon mutual trust. The expectation that is set by early consultation is that the client will be on their best behavior and the advocate in the child welfare setting will use everything at their disposal to highlight that good behavior. It simply comes down in large part to the attorney simply “being there”, for you can’t represent that which you do not know.
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