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professional manner when before the judge or meeting with other individuals <br />involved in a case. The agency attorney should share relevant information from <br />the case file with other parties in the case, when appropriate. <br />C-2 Advise and Counsel: <br />5. Counsel the client/agency about all legal matters related to individual <br />cases as well as policy issues and periodically monitor cases <br />Action: The agency attorney must spend time with caseworkers to prepare <br />individual cases and answer questions. The attorney should explain to the <br />caseworker, in clear language, what is expected to happen before, during and after <br />each hearing. The agency attorney should be available for in-person meetings, <br />telephone calls, and when appropriate, to periodically monitor cases. The agency <br />attorney is not the caseworker supervisor, but rather should monitor to ensure that <br />legal barriers, such as notice and unresolved paternity, are removed. The agency <br />attorney should attend major case staffings when appropriate. The attorney should <br />be aware of any barriers the parents may have to participating in the proposed <br />case plan, such as an inability to read or language barriers, and counsel the agency <br />accordingly. The attorney should be available to agency administrative staff to <br />advise on policy concerns or general issues facing the agency from the court or <br />community. <br />Commentary: The agency attorney's job extends beyond the courtroom. The <br />attorney should be a counselor as well as litigator. The agency attorney should be <br />available to talk with caseworkers to prepare cases, to provide advice about <br />ongoing concerns, and provide information about policy issues. Open lines of <br />communication between attorneys and caseworkers help ensure caseworkers get <br />answers to questions and attorneys get the information and documents they need. <br />A major case staffing is one in which the attorney or caseworker believes the <br />attorney will be needed to provide advice or one in which a major decision on <br />legal steps or strategies will be decided. The attorney and agency may want to <br />create a policy in advance concerning whether the agency attorney should <br />routinely attend certain staffings, such as the development of an initial case plan, <br />a case plan in which the goal will be changed to adoption, or when another major <br />change is planned. <br />C-3 Court Preparation: <br />6. Develop a case theory and strategy to follow at hearings and negotiations <br />Action: At the beginning of the case, the agency attorney should try to project the <br />future of the case and think through the steps that the caseworker and attorney <br />will need to take to ensure the desired outcomes. In establishing the case theory <br />and strategy, the agency attorney should think about concurrent planning, <br />planning for reunification for the child as well as other permanency outcomes if <br />8 <br />s: <br />is R' "c:ii <br />