This course will teach you how to represent parents in abuse and neglect proceedings brought by the state. Attorney Allison C. Williams mainly covers key legal resources, the agency process relative to the court process, how the proceedings work, placement & visitation, actual court proceedings, mental health professionals, services pending trial, the trial itself and additional considerations after the trial has concluded. Additional subjects addressed include the DSM-5 manual, the complaint, what happens after the complaint is filed, the Adoption and Safe Families Act (ASFA), themes to these cases, supervised visits, the finding of abuse & neglect, sexual abuse, types of neglect, the mental health professional’s report, deciding to voir dire the mental health professional, quantitative testing, the MMPI, timelines, evidence, hearsay, the business records exception, the police report, physical & mental evaluations, settlement, confidentiality of records and evidence from CPS cases.
Allison C. Williams, Esq., is Founder and Owner of the Williams Law Group, LLC, with offices in Union and Wall Township, New Jersey. She is a Fellow of the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers and is Certified by the Supreme Court of New Jersey as a Matrimonial Law Attorney. Ms. Williams is a member of the New Jersey Board on Attorney Certification (NJBAC) – Matrimonial Committee, a New Jersey Supreme Court committee that determines eligibility of candidates to be certified as a recognized practitioner in the field of matrimonial law. She practices exclusively in the area of matrimonial and family law, with an emphasis on complex Child Welfare matters, including representation of parents in DYFS/DCPP matters, representation of resource family parents, and consultation to matrimonial counsel regarding DCPP investigations and related issues. Ms. Williams lectures frequently for several professional organizations, including ICLE, and her articles have appeared in the New Jersey Lawyer, the New Jersey Family Lawyer, and other publications state-wide.