Services

Special Education

Children’s Law Group is well known for its record of success in protecting the rights of children with disabilities and their families.  If you believe your child’s school is not fulfilling its obligation to provide the services your child needs, we can help resolve the problem.

Our experience extends to:

• Representation in state and federal court
• Due process hearing
• Participation in IEP and 504 meetings
• Representation in school discipline hearings, including suspension and expulsion
• Establishing relationships with medical and mental health professionals

In a recent federal court case involving a hearing-impaired student with a cochlear implant, Children’s Law Group attorneys secured a decision compelling a large public school district to reimburse the parents for the cost of educational services it would not provide and pay for the student to complete his education at an oral school.  Click for details.

Adoption

Children’s Law Group represents clients in contested and uncontested adoptions, second-parent adoptions, and DCFS adoptions.

We have extensive experience helping adoptive parents struggling with challenging issues that can arise in the adoption process.  We have represented parents in custody disputes with biological parents and relatives.  We also work with adoptive parents to secure the educational, medical, or psychiatric services their child requires.

Please note that Children’s Law Group LLC is not an adoption agency or a child-welfare agency.  Our adoption services are restricted to legal services as permitted by law.

Juvenile Guardianship

The attorneys at Children’s Law Group represent parties in guardianship actions involving children under the Illinois Juvenile Court Act and the Illinois Probate Act.  We have extensive experience representing family members wishing to become guardians of children whose parents cannot assume full responsibility for their care and working with families to establish agreed guardianship orders.  We have also represented parents objecting to the appointment of a guardian, seeking to have a guardianship terminated, or exercising their right to maintain contact with a child in guardianship.

Child Protection/Child Welfare (DCFS)

Children’s Law Group attorneys represent clients before the Juvenile Court and in DCFS administrative hearing in matters relating to foster children and subsidized adoptions, such as payments and services.

We also represent clients during all phases of child abuse and neglect investigations, Juvenile Court proceedings, and DCFS administrative appeals of indicated findings of abuse or neglect.

Juvenile Law

In cases involving delinquency and criminal charges against children, we work with clients throughout all phases of delinquency proceedings, including contesting actions to transfer cases to adult criminal court and representing children before the appellate court.

School Discipline Issues

Recent public attention to incidents of extreme school violence has resulted in school districts’ increased use of harsh disciplinary measure in response to negative behavior by students.  The attorneys of Children’s Law Group represent parents and their children in all aspects of school disciplinary proceedings, including conferences with school personnel and school disciplinary and expulsion hearings.  We work to ensure that school systems respect students’ and parents’ constitutional rights of free speech and due process.

Special education students are disproportionately represented among students who are suspended or expelled.  We work with parents to prevent improper special education labeling or inappropriate provision of special education services that may contribute to a disciplinary event.

We also work with college and university students and their families when students are facing expulsion, social or academic disciplinary proceedings, or criminal charges related to on-campus incidents.

Adult Guardianship

The attorneys at Children’s Law Group understand that adult guardianship often involves an intersection of complex legal, financial, and emotional concerns and the need for mental health treatment or services to address developmental disabilities.

Our adult guardianship practice involves working with families seeking guardianship of a developmentally disabled or mentally ill child over 18 or other mentally ill or developmentally disabled adult relatives.

Mental Health

People with a mental illness or developmental disability may require medical treatment or interventions to protect their health and safety.  When such individuals are unable or unwilling to give informed consent, family members may seek court approval for the specific medical treatments or institutional placements their relative needs.  Our attorneys advise families concerning these issues and represent them in court proceedings.

Mental Health and Health Care

Children’s Law Group attorneys also work with health care providers and facilities to address legal issues arising under the Illinois Mental Health and Developmental Disabilities Confidentiality Act, Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPPAA), and other federal and state laws regulating the provision of health care services.  Our health care clients include psychiatrists, psychologists, social workers and other psychotherapists, an internationally recognized residential treatment facility for emotionally disturbed children, and a medical genetics laboratory and research company.

Divorce Mediation

Children’s Law Group attorneys understand that divorcing parents may feel they have little or no control over important decisions being made which will affect their families. Divorce mediation is about conflict resolution, not winning or losing. Mediation is a voluntary, confidential way to privately resolve parenting issues that will affect your family long after the divorce is final. Mediation provides structured communication and decision-making processes. Our experienced mediator will guide you through a process designed to meet your needs and those of your family.