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Full-Text Articles in Law
The Ethics Of Effective Advocacy For Children In Abuse And Neglect Proceedings, Suparna Malempati
The Ethics Of Effective Advocacy For Children In Abuse And Neglect Proceedings, Suparna Malempati
Suparna Malempati
This article addresses ethical dilemmas lawyers face when representing children in abuse and neglect proceedings in juvenile court. Children in such cases need traditional advocacy in order to protect their legal rights and effectuate just outcomes. Lawyers who represent children have an ethical obligation to perform this function as advocates for their clients and not merely as guardians ad litem who make paternalistic recommendations about the best interests of children. The requirement that lawyers disregard their role as advocates for the role of guardians ad litem circumvents the ethical rules that govern lawyers and fails to adequately and effectively safeguard …
"What Did You Say?": Semantic Polysemy In California Juvenile Dependency Dispute Resolution, Kelly X. Ranasinghe
"What Did You Say?": Semantic Polysemy In California Juvenile Dependency Dispute Resolution, Kelly X. Ranasinghe
Kelly X Ranasinghe
Non-adversarial resolution of dependency cases is a statutorily mandated practice in California. Practitioners in California Juvenile Dependency courts attempt to settle cases without litigation, relying instead on negotiation between the various parties using informal discourse. This discourse utilizes polysemous dependency terms affecting the contextual understanding of statements by creating underlying ambiguity. The ambiguity of these terms creates communicative interference by engendering misunderstanding, lack of specificity and other communication problems. By recognizing polysemous qualities of core terms used in dependency discourse, practitioners can communicate more effectively and efficiently when resolving cases.