Anybody here familiar with the Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA) program?

My understanding is that you simply guide the child and look out for their best interests. Like a good parent or guardian would do, using your life experience and the training CASA gives you.

I love this program, and I encourage you to follow through. I’ve given it serious thought in the past, myself.

Yes. They can be helpful but they can be annoying, too.

@jca, Could you elaborate?

Yes, I’ve talked extensively with people who were CASA workers, about it.

I think it’s a great program that provides a sorely-needed balance to what society offers to troubled families, which is actually probably one of the most important needs our society has, because every severely messed-up person, child or adult, causes all sorts of chaos for all the people around them, and they tend to mess up other people, and it affects practically everything our society does, and it may be the one area with the most need and potential for development. The need is dire, difficult, widespread, and pervades our whole society. It needs every person who is willing and able to help.

CASA programs train CASA workers extensively. You aren’t qualified now, but they can train and qualify you. There may be different levels of training and working – I’m not sure about that and I expect it may vary from state to state. I’ve talked to people who were extensively trained and who dealt with seriously messed-up cases.

I expect you will learn valuable things about difficult subjects (e.g. signs of child abuse). Just doing the training should also give you tools to use for the rest of your life in recognizing and dealing with the messed up people you’ll meet in the rest of your own life, too.

It may also be really hard and upsetting and mess with your peace of mind. The people I talked to all said it was valuable and needed work and they’re glad they did it but it was hard and they eventually stopped doing it because it was too much. It’s often heartbreaking how little can be done in our current system for kids who are in atrocious situations, and adults who need healing etc but our society isn’t set up to handle it well.

From the standpoint of being a worker, they go to court and make recommendations, which mean for the overworked worker it’s may amount to annoying meddling.

My dear friend was a Guardian ad Litem (what they call those advocates in my area).

It was emotionally traumatic for her. She finally stopped after she recommended a 3 year old child be placed with his mother, and a month afterward he was killed. The mother’s boyfriend ran him over with his car.

In our area, the child’s court appointed attorney or “law guardian” is something different. The law guardian is mandatory. CASA is not.

The guardian ad litem is not an attorney. Just a “voice for the child” in court and with case workers

In our area, the CASA is the voice for the child. Their job is to advocate for the best interest of the child, and could be the same as the GAL. These volunteers are required to go through extensive training, and are required to follow some pretty strict guidelines concerning the child’s best interests.

Most of what I read here doesn’t present a very good understanding of CASA. I was trained and worked in family court myself. The CASA volunteer keeps up with a case’s journey through the system, helping to insure no one drops the ball. The volunteer meets families and unofficially inspects behaviors and homes. Judges often asked for the CASA’s opinion about cases. CASA’s concern is that children are safe; that means sheltered, clothed, and fed….not to our own personal expectations but simply, safe. Those who mention it is the same as a GAL are incorrect. CASA’s are not attorneys and aren’t paid; GALs are both.

Maybe where you are is different. My friend is not an attorney, and was not paid.

A GAL is not necessarily an attorney, but is more like to exercise “power of attorney”, that is, to make legal decisions that do not require an attorney, in the best interest of the child.

No, the GAL acts on behalf of the child. They are a guardian during litigation, that is loosely the translation.

A Guardian ad Litem is a volunteer appointed by the court to protect the rights and advocate the best interests of a child involved in a court proceeding. The volunteer Guardian ad Litem makes independent recommendations to the court by focusing on the needs of each child. The Guardian ad Litem advocates for the best interests of the child they represent.
A Volunteer Guardian ad Litem is an individual who is appointed by the court to advocate for children who come into the court system primarily as a result of alleged abuse or neglect.

Source

Do I need to be an attorney to be a Volunteer Guardian ad Litem?
No. Anyone with common sense, compassion and dedication to children can be a Guardian ad Litem.

What is the role of the Guardian ad Litem?
The Guardian ad Litem carries out the following activities:
Investigation: Carries out an objective, systematic examination of the situation, including relevant history, environment, relationships, and needs of the child. The GAL interviews family, friends, neighbors and members of the child’s school.
Facilitation: Identifies resources and services for the child and facilitates a collaborative relationship between all parties involved in the case, helping to create a situation in which the child’s needs are met.
Advocacy: Conveys the best interests of the child to the court and relevant agencies.
Monitoring: Keeps track of whether the orders of the court, as well as the plans of the Department of Children and Families, are carried out.

Florida is one state. This can be different in counties within a state. It just depends on the system. I am not familiar with Florida even though I own a house here now. I am not licensed here and am not working. I don’t plan to change that, but who knows. GALs aren’t utilized just in family court either. Cases that have to do with capacity often will prompt a judge to appoint a GAL.

There are over 3100 counties in the USA. That’s a lot of family courts.

Here in this county, someone who is a GAL is an attorney.

Thanks all! What I gather from the answers is that those in the CASA program take their job seriously and do rather well at it, but there is a tendency to leave after a few years due to the emotional toll.

I think one of the most disheartening things is following a case for two years and in the end the court placing the child back into parental care and the child is harmed, or worse. It does happen. Drugs ruin lives; I have seen it over and over.