Qualified Experts for Evaluating Children's Competency

One voice can make all the difference! Alert Action Qualified Experts for Evaluating Children's Competency Take Action! Contact the Judicial Council so LCSW's are included! Currently, the Judicial Council of California is drafting rules stating the qualifications and appointment of experts who evaluate children when the court or minor's counsel raises the issue of competency to stand trial in any juvenile proceeding. This is in order to implement a bill passed last year, AB 2212 (Fuentes). Our concern is that the current regulations do not include LCSW's as qualified experts. The proposed rule specifies that the expert must be a licensed psychologist or psychiatrist with particular expertise in child development, forensic evaluation, competency standards, and interventions. The Judicial Council is looking for comments about this regulation by June 20th. They are specifically soliciting comments on whether the court should expand the list of accepted experts to other professionals such as social workers. It is imperative that we get as many comments in as possible. Please send the following letter to the Judicial Council and add your own personal comments if you have experience with this issue.