Choosing a Lawyer: Guidelines
It is not an easy decision. Suppose a friend of mine in another
State needed a DCF defense lawyer. I would advise the friend to
ask each possible lawyer at least the following questions:
1. Do you regularly oppose DCF in contested court cases?
The reason is simple. DCF cases are not like criminal cases or
divorce cases. They have some elements in common with those
cases, but they are not the same. The pretrial procedure is
different, the evidentiary rules are different, the motions are
different, and the client is required to speak to the opposing
party (DCF), whether he wants to or not. Also, the press and
public are excluded, giving the State more power than in a
public trial.
2. Are you familiar with criminal law and divorce law?
Your DCF case might already encompass, or could encompass in the
future, a criminal case or a divorce case, or even both. The
lawyer should have some experience with these types of cases, as
what happens in criminal or divorce court may affect juvenile
court, and vice-versa. For example, taking a plea bargain may be
routine in criminal court, but it can have severe unintended
consequences in juvenile court, where the evidentiary standards
are different. Also, a divorce or post-judgment matter will
often be put on hold, pending what happens in juvenile court. If
you are involved in two or more courts, it might help
financially to have the same lawyer for all of them.
NOTE TO CLIENTS: If you do have a related case, whether civil or criminal, you may be able to look up your case and get details on the Connecticut Judicial web site.
3. Do you meet with DCF and the client together from time to
time?
DCF has enormous advantages, in that the client is forced to
meet with them, or be branded as non-compliant. Further, it is
economically impossible for the lawyer to be present at every
such meeting. However, the lawyer must be present at some
meetings, including initial ones, to set the tone and protect
the client’s rights. Therefore, the lawyer should be willing to
make “home visits” and attend meetings at DCF offices when
needed. DCF defense law is almost never limited to the lawyer’s
office; and certainly not to occasional courthouse chats.
4. Do you get a copy of the client’s file and review the
important records with the client?
There is a wealth of information on clients in DCF files, and
often there is a smoking gun. Getting the information is
sometimes difficult, and reviewing it is tedious. However, any
lawyer who does not do that, and is not fully prepared, will not
be in a position to adequately represent the client. Further, if
a court case has already started, then court files must be
reviewed. The lawyer must review the important records with the
client, in order to plan a proper defense. Otherwise, the lawyer
is flying blind.
5. Do you appear at case status conferences with your own
recommendations, or do you simply wait for the DCF
recommendations?
Being unprepared, and waiting for DCF to tell you what to do, is
a losing strategy. A prepared lawyer will have reviewed files,
spoken to the client, spoken to service providers, gathered
witnesses and documents, and be ready with his own
recommendations. The lawyer must be prepared to file court
motions if needed. In simplest terms, your lawyer must be
pro-active; since DCF, a large organization represented by the
State Attorney General, most certainly is.
6. Do you regularly interface with other lawyers in the case?
In a court case, the child has a court-appointed lawyer,
and sometimes a court-appointed Guardian Ad Litem (GAL) as well.
Your lawyer should work with those people and ensure that they
have all the facts, not simply DCF’s facts. Further, your lawyer
should ensure that they visit the child, see parent/child
interaction, and have the opportunity to interview the parent
and visit the home. The lawyer should ensure that they have
access to all documents, not simply the ones that DCF gives them
or that are easily available. Occasionally, your lawyer can work
with the Assistant Attorney General (AAG), who represents DCF,
if DCF is being particularly difficult. The point is that your
lawyer should be willing to work, on your behalf, with the other
lawyers in all cases.
7. Are your costs reasonable?
Sadly, lawyers have nothing to sell but time. Costs vary, and
they can almost never be guaranteed in advance, as cases depend
upon many factors. You want to ensure that the lawyer uses
appropriate technology to minimize costs, and uses associates
and paralegals whenever possible to keep costs down. Further,
you want to ensure that you aren’t paying for unnecessary
frills. Your lawyer should be able to offer you a brief
consultation at a reasonable fee, before you commit to full
representation.
8. Do you use e-mail?
E-mail is the greatest office time-saver ever developed. If you
have to waste time playing telephone tag, the chances are that
you are being short-changed. Further, if your lawyer cannot or
will not communicate with you, then you are certainly being
short-changed. Lawyers are busy, and unlike on TV, they have
many clients and many cases; but they should still be reasonably
available, and always there in case of emergency.
9.
Do you prepare clients for psychological evaluations?
In many cases, parents are required to undergo a
psychological evaluation. Sometimes, the children may also
be evaluated, and there may be a parent/child interactional
evaluation. Suffice it to say that most clients are
nervous about such evaluations. They have no idea what
they encompass, what the evaluator is supposed to do, or what
they should or should not say. Further, DCF often "loads"
the psychologist in advance with its own documents, which are
usually unfavorable to the parent. Also, DCF often "loads"
the questions that the psychologist is supposed to answer.
As has often been remarked, he who controls interview questions
controls the interview. Innumerable cases have been lost
because the parent was not adequately prepared for the
psychological evaluation. You need a lawyer who will:
ensure that balanced documents go to the psychologist; ensure
that the psychologist consults your own service providers also;
ensure that the questions to the psychologist are fair and
balanced; advise you as to the purpose of the evaluation and the
limits of confidentiality; and advise you of what to expect at
the evaluation in terms of: general approach, preparation for
interview questions, the reasons not to argue or plead your case, the
nature of objective personality tests, and the nature of
projective personality tests.
10. Do you have access to expert witnesses if needed?
Occasionally it is necessary to hire an expert witness, whether
in psychology, medical technology, child custody, or other
matter. Your lawyer should be able to find and help you retain
such an expert witness if needed.
11. Do you use a lobbyist?
DCF typically is very active in dealing with the State
Legislature to get its way. DCF tries to get bills through the
Legislature, get administrative regulations approved, and squash
any attempts to get bills and regulations passed that would
restrict its powers. DCF also disguises its lobbyists, who are
typically DCF employees, as “legislative liaisons”, “government
relations consultants”, and the like. The upshot is that
taxpayers, in effect, pay DCF to lobby against the taxpayers’
own interests. Your lawyer should have access to a lobbyist
who at least keeps abreast of DCF doings in the Legislature and
tries to influence the Legislature for the benefit of clients,
before it is too late. This, of course, is unfortunately
another reason why you cannot defeat DCF for free.
There are other possible questions. In the end, choosing a lawyer is a judgment call. I hope that the above list will prove useful.
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