An evaluation of Montana's child welfare court pre‐hearing conference pilot project

• Published date: 01 January 2023
• Author: Alicia Summers,Jacqueline Kirshenbaum
• Date: 01 January 2023
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.1111/fcre.12685

ARTICLE

An evaluation of Montana's child welfare court

pre-hearing conference pilot project

Alicia Summers

1

| Jacqueline Kirshenbaum

2

1

Data Savvy Consulting, LCC, Reno,

Nevada, USA

2

University of Nevada, Reno, Nevada, USA

Correspondence

Alicia Summers, Data Savvy Consulting, LCC,

Reno NV 89503, USA.

Email: alicia.d.summers@gmail.com

Abstract

Pre-hearing conferences are a form of alternative dispute

resolution that have been implemented intothe child welfare

court process. Montana recently piloted a pre-hearing con-

ference model to occur before the first hearing on the case.

The goal of the pilot was to increase discussion and resolu-

tion of contested visitation, placement, and service issues

and to better engage parents in the process. Data were col-

lected across multiple years to explore the effectiveness of

the pilot in improving outcomes for children and families.

Analysis of the data revealed a positive relationship between

program implementation and timelier permanency. Parents

who attend and have higher levels of participation in the pre-

hearing conference are also more likely to reunify.

KEYWORDS

alternative dispute resolution, child welfare, foster care,

pre-hearing conference, reunification

Key points

•More than 400,000 children are currently in foster care

in the United States and less than half will reunify with

their parents.

•Pre-hearing conference models offer opportunities for

parents and professionals to meet outside of court to

discuss case issues.

•A pre-hearing conference, prior to the first hearing on a

child welfare case,can help engage parents in the process.

DOI: 10.1111/fcre.12685

© 2022 Association of Family and Conciliation Courts.

116 Family Court Rev. 2023;61:116–134.

wileyonlinelibrary.com/journal/fcre

•Post-implementation of a pre-hearing conference, cases

achieved timelier permanency.

•Presence and participation of parents at a pre-hearing con-

ference was related to increased reunification on a case.

More than 400,000 children are in the foster care system in the United States at any given time. On average, they

will spend over a year in care, with 2019 statistics indicating a median of 15.5 months for youth who exited (U.S.

Department of Health and Human Services, 2020). Their average time in care has increased in the last decade by two

additional months (Child Welfare Information Gateway, 2019). Most of these youth have a goal of reunification with

their parentsor primary caretaker. Yet, recent numbersindicate a decrease in the last decadeof children who achieved

reunification, dropping from 53% in 2007 to 49% in 2017 (Child Welfare Information Gateway, 2019). This is a trend

that may have beenimpacted by the passage of the Adoption and Safe Families Act (ASFA) of 1997 (P.L. 105–89), as

children were being reunified at a rate of 60% immediately following ASFA but with much longer times in care

(Golden & Macomber, 2009). Data suggests there was already a trend in reunification rates dropping near the end of

the pre-ASFAera (Wulzcyn, 2004) so this may not be sufficientto explain the continueddecline of reunification.

A systemicreview of research relatedto outcomes for childrenwho have been in foster careindicates that children

who have beenin foster care experiencepoorer educationaland employment outcomes,are more likely to be homeless,

and are more likely to experience mental health and substance abuse issues than their peersin the general population

(Gypen, Venderfaeillie, De Maeyer, Belenger, & Van Holen,2017). As such, it is important to consider ways to expedite

the system and increase the possibility of reunification when safely possible for youth. Montana has implemented a

pre-hearingconference pilot (a form of alternative dispute resolution), to help themachieve these goals. While alterna-

tive disputeresolution techniquessuch as mediation havehad some success in childwelfare, there is almostno research

on the effectiveness of a pre-hearing conferencemodel on child welfarecase processing or outcomes.

INTRODUCTION

Child welfare court process

Involvement in the foster care system is a process that includes both the state child welfare agency and the court

system. This system is designed to promote the well-being of children and their families (Child Welfare Information

Gateway, 2013). The child welfare court process includes a series of events, beginning with preliminary protective or

shelter care hearings when the judge decides if it is contrary to the welfare of a child to remain in the home, and

whether the child should be placed into foster care. Following this, the court holds an adjudicatory hearing in which

the court decides whether abuse or neglect occurred and whether the child(ren) should remain under the court's

jurisdiction (Child Welfare Information Gateway, 2013). Often held during the adjudication hearing or in a subse-

quent disposition hearing, the court enters a disposition in which the court orders treatment and services for the par-

ents. In adherence with federal law, courts must hold a permanency hearing (i.e., to determine the child's

permanency plan) within 12 months after a child enters foster care and every 12 months thereafter to review the

permanency plan (42 USCA § 675 (5)(C), Child Welfare Information Gateway, 2013). This process may be long and

stressful to parents who may lack the requisite knowledge to fully understand the court process and to navigate the

complex legal system. The poor outcomes for youth who are placed in foster care coupled with parental challenges

in understanding and navigating the system indicate a strong need for effective methods of simplifying the system

and reducing the amount of time children spend in the foster care system.

SUMMERS AND KIRSHENBAUM 117