Raising the Bar-A Conference for Idaho’s Child Protection Community: Strengthening Advocacy, Collaboration, and Outcomes for Children in Foster Care

Sponsored by the Idaho State Bar Child Protection Section, Center for the Rights of Abused Children and the Idaho Courts with an Idaho Court Improvement Grant

Friday, April 10, 2026
8:00 a.m. – 5:30 p.m. (MT)

Idaho Water Center – Legacy Pointe

322 E. Front St. – Boise

*Live Webcast Available

8.0 CLE credits – NAC Approved

Registration: 

Standard Registration:                                               $200.00

Members of the ISB Child Protection Section       $150.00

Guardian ad Litems, CASA & Students                  $  50.00

Take Advantage of the Section Membership Registration Benefits Now: Join the Child Protection Section for only $25.

** Non-Idaho State Bar Members and Students: A bar number is not required to register.  Please use 0000 as your bar number when prompted.**

8:00  am          Registration & Coffee

8:30 am           Opening Plenary - Raising Voices, Raising Standards: Five Strategies that Make a Difference
                       Angela Orkin, Jim Walsh, and John Walsh, True North Child Advocates

How do you transform a child welfare system? One case at a time. Join the hosts of The Children’s Law Podcast to learn how their practice philosophy can be used to reduce the time children spend in care, while maintaining excellent outcomes for children and families. This session will focus on the 5 key strategies they use to change the practice and culture of child welfare systems. Whether you are an advocate for children or parents, a lawyer or judge, or anyone working for or with the agency, these strategies can be used to make an immediate impact on the children and families you serve.

10:00 am        Break

10:15 am         Everyday Ethics in Child Welfare Representation: Navigating Conflicts, Capacity, and Confidentiality
                       Jennifer Renne and Beverly S. Schulterbrandt, ABA’s Center for Legal and Judicial Innovation and Advancement

This session will explore the challenging ethical issues that play out in unique ways for attorneys representing children, parents, and child welfare agencies. We will cover topics such as confidentiality, representing clients with diminished capacity, interactions with represented and unrepresented parties, conflicts of interest, and who makes decisions when your client is a government agency. Through a series of hypothetical case scenarios, we will examine how the Idaho Rules of Professional Conduct apply, as we engage in active debate on handling the difficult issues that arise day-to-day. The session will help attorneys develop an increased awareness of how ethical issues can shape representation, resulting in better decision-making and advocacy in the face of ethical dilemmas.

12:00 pm        Hosted Lunch & Constitutional Rights of Children in Foster Care
                       Tim Keller, Center for the Rights of Abused Children

Children in foster care have enforceable constitutional rights to safety, family integrity, and permanency. This session translates those principles into practice for attorneys, judges, GALs, CASAs, social workers, and advocates alike.

1:30 pm          Kinship, Siblings, and Stability
                       Tom Jose, Center for the Rights of Abused Children

                       Lily Colby, National Network for Sibling Connections

Exploring the critical importance of kinship placements and sibling bonds for children in care. How do we identify and support kinship caregivers, maintain sibling relationships, and reduce unnecessary disruptions? Practical strategies for judges, DCS, GALs, and CASAs.

2:30 pm          Break

2:45 pm          Supporting Older Youth: Transitions, Mental Health, and Self-Determination
                       Tom Rawlings, Chalmers, Adams, Backer & Kaufman, LLC

When child protection authorities remove a child from his or her family to foster care, they take on the responsibility to preserve that child's right to an open future.  For children who age out of foster care or whose time in care may have created setbacks on their path to that future, state and federal governments are increasingly investing in supportive services designed to help them bridge that gap.  We will discuss the benefits of and need for services such as independent living programs, expanded educational support, apprenticeships, and mentorships as well as steps that are being taken to provide and pay for those programs.

4:00 pm         Raising the Bar Together
                       Panel of Judges, State Leaders, and Child Protection Practitioners
How Idaho can strengthen child protection by improving collaboration, respecting children’s rights, supporting families, and creating a system that works better for kids.

5:30 pm          Program Concludes and Social Begins