Missouri and Illinois were two of eight states to score a lowly “D” in a new report card on the legal representation it provides for kids in the foster care system.

A Child’s Right to Counsel, presented on Capitol Hill today, said too many states do not provide attorneys for abused or neglected children who either become or are at risk of becoming legal guardians of the state. Under the system, the courts have ultimate authority to decide where a child lives, who will be a foster parent or guardian, what school district they will attend, if they will live with their siblings, what medical care they will receive and other formative factors in a child’s life.

Authors of the study said the system mandates the right of an attorney for both states and parents in dependency hearings, yet children already subjected to abuse and neglect have no guarantee of full legal representation. Without an attorney, a child has no ability to file an appeal or use a litany of other legal tools that can change the course of dependency hearing, said Amy Harfeld, executive director of First Star, which co-authored the study with The Children’s Advocacy Institute of the University of San Diego School of Law.

“To expect for any child - much less legal adults - to navigate the legal system on their own is unreasonable and inhumane,” Harfeld told legislators.

Missouri’s current law mandates that abused or neglected child in court hearings have guardian ad-litems (GALs) with them in the court to represent them, but the state lost significant points because it does not require GALs to be practicing attorneys. The study also downgraded Missouri because attorneys who are assigned to children are not directed to advocate for the wishes of the child. Instead, the law calls for judges to “articulate” the child’s wishes, but not necessarily push for them in a court hearing.
The study noted Missouri is currently reviewing and upgrading its laws in this area.

GALs in Illinois are also not required to be attorneys, the study said. Additionally it said  Illinois fails to require that attorneys stay with a child’s case through the appeal process and does not sufficiently train all GALs.

Massachusetts and Connecticut both scored A-pluses in the study because they ensure an attorney for every child and have put caseload caps on those attorneys, the study said. States that received an “F” were Delaware, Florida, Hawaii, Idaho, Indiana, Maine and North Dakota.