State and local child welfare agencies have instituted reforms in response to consent decrees, settlement agreements, and court orders resulting from class action lawsuits.
Child Welfare Consent Decrees: Analysis of 35 Court Actions from 1995 to 2005 (PDF - 465 KB)
Child Welfare League of America & National Child Welfare Resource Center on Legal and Judicial Issues (2005)
Analyzes systemic improvement topics addressed within child welfare class action consent decrees, settlement agreements, and court orders and decisions over 20 years.
Advocates for improvements in child protection, foster care, and adoption through the court system, policy analysis, and public information.
For the Welfare of Children: Lessons Learned From Class Action Litigation (PDF - 723 KB)
Meltzer, Joseph, & Shookhoff, (Eds.)
Center for the Study of Social Policy (2012)
Presents a series of papers evaluating the use of class action litigation to reform public child welfare systems. Sections include lessons learned that encompass all stages of the litigation process.
Foster Care Reform Litigation Docket
National Center for Youth Law (2010)
Offers summaries of pending and recently resolved child welfare reform cases.
Improving the Child Welfare Workforce: Lessons Learned from Class Action Litigation (PDF - 2,670 KB)
Children's Rights & National Center for Youth Law (2007)
Reviews efforts to strengthen the child welfare workforce in the context of class action litigation in 12 jurisdictions across the nation.
Strategies for Empowering the Child Welfare Administrator Facing Class Action Litigation
Blome & Steib
Journal of Public Child Welfare, 1(2), 2007
Provides an overview of the litigation process and introduces a set of strategies for administrators as they respond to actual or potential lawsuits.