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One of the greatest challenges for kinship families is that they often lack full legal rights and responsibilities for the children in their care. Legal services can be costly, inaccessible, and unknown by kin caregivers. Without legal assistance and guidance, many kin caregivers cannot access the services and supports they need to meet a child’s basic needs.
Fortunately, there are a number of legal models that are being used successfully by organizations around the country to provide critical legal services to kinship/grandfamilies. The Grandfamilies & Kinship Support Network’s Subject Matter Experts from the American Bar Association Center on Children and the Law helped identify legal models and strategies that are being used to successfully help kinship families across the country. They shared what they learned and were joined by several organizations that are helping these families overcome their challenges with accessing legal services and obtaining guardianship, power of attorney, or other legal relationships to children in their care.
Learn replicable ideas and strategies to provide supportive legal assistance to kinship families in your community through legal education and resources, brief legal services, and legal representation.
Presenters:
- Heidi Redlich Epstein, Associate Director, American Bar Association Center on Children and the Law
- Steven Jessen-Howard, Staff Attorney, American Bar Association Center on Children and the Law
- Sarah Hedden, Esq., MSW, Managing Attorney, Center for Elder Law & Justice
- Celeste E. Miller, Statewide Kinship Care Legal Aid Coordinator, King County Bar Association
See Upcoming Events
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June 25-27, 2025
Generations United’s 2025 Intergenerational Conference, will be held in Louisville, KY, and will include a full-day preconference intensive on kinship and grandfamilies on June 25th, along with a full conference track on the families and programs, policies, and practices that support them.
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September 10, 2025 from 2:00 - 3:30 PM ET
With the significant increase in the cost of food, some grandfamilies and kinship families, especially those on fixed incomes, may not have ample food to…