Imagine a child.  Imagine the child is abused.  Imagine that, against the odds, the child’s abuse comes to light and law enforcement gets involved.  One might imagine that the horror is now over and only healing remains.  But the truth is the child is now thrust into a complicated and foreign world of agencies, prosecutors, court dates, and new stresses. 

This child needs an ally who is trained to listen to her, stand up for her rights, and advocate on her behalf to ensure that she is treated fairly and has access to justice.  She needs a well-trained victims’ rights attorney.

As part of NCVLI’s commitment to furthering the rights of child-victims of crime, the Safeguarding Child-Victims’ Rights Initiative has spent the past year working with an eleven-member multidisciplinary curriculum committee to  develop an intensive two-day, skills-based training* on how to provide effective rights enforcement representation to child-victims of crime.  This two-day program, Child-Victims: Providing Effective Rights Enforcement Representation, will be offered in partnership with co-presenter Lisa Teesch-Maguire of the Rocky Mountain Victim Law Center at the University of Colorado Law School in Boulder, Colorado on Thursday, May 31st and Friday, June 1st, 2012. 

Because the response to child-victims must be collaborative and multi-disciplinary, this training welcomes lawyers, advocates, medical professionals, social workers, law students, and other allied professionals who work with children who are the victims of crime. 

This intensive two-day training will provide participants with an overview of victims’ rights and detailed, age-appropriate techniques for working with child-victims at different developmental stages.  The training focuses heavily on practical litigation skills that can assist attorneys in asserting victims’ rights throughout a criminal case against a child-victim’s offender.  Specifically, the practical litigation aspects of the training will cover: 1) Entering a Case, 2) Protecting Child-Victims’ Identities in Court Proceedings, 3) Privacy and Subpoenas, 4) Release Conditions and Protective Orders, 5) the Right to be Present, 6) Testimonial Accommodations, 7) Preparing the Child-Victim for Testimony and Being Heard, 8) Restitution, and 9) Pleas.  It will also address ethical issues that may arise when representing child-victims of crime and discuss the inter-relation of the disciplines and professions that are often involved when a child is victimized.   CLE credits will be sought from the Colorado Board of Continuing Legal and Judicial Education.

Whether you know nothing about victims’ rights or working with child-victims  or you already have some experience, this training will provide you with information that can assist you in becoming a more effective advocate for child-victims.

Child-victims need an ally who can tackle the complex and unique issues that arise when they become involved with the justice system.  NCVLI’s two-day training will ensure that these children have someone to turn to. 

What Attendees at the Portland, Oregon Child-Victim Training Had to Say:

• “Program presentation was excellent – nice blend of lecture and exercises.”
• “Great training & great staff giving the training.  Everyone was very knowledgeable!”
• “New attorney to victim[s’] rights in [the] criminal context so – everything has practical implications.”

This program is a part of Enhancing Justice for Crime Victims - a series of in-person and webinar continuing legal education courses being taught throughout the country in 2012 by NCVLI and members of NCVLI’s bar association, the National Alliance of Victims’ Rights Attorneys (NAVRA)** on a variety of victims’ rights topics.  For more information on the training series, please click here.

Tuition
Standard - $175
Non-Profit, Government, or Academic - $125
(Enhanced NAVRA Members** will receive a $50 discount)
Law Students – Free (limited spaces available)
Lunch will be on your own both days.

Cancellation Policy
Tuition minus a $25 handling fee will be refunded, provided a written request is submitted to NCVLI and received by 5pm PST, Thursday, May 24, 2012.

Click here to view the topics that will be covered during this two-day, specialized training.

* CLE credits will be sought from the Colorado Board of Continuing Legal and Judicial Education

Lawyers, Victim Advocates, and Allied Professionals –
REGISTER HERE

Law Students – REGISTER HERE

(Note that law students may register at no charge.  Due to limited capacity, only registered law student attendees will be admitted.  If you are unable to register because the system indicates that registration capacity is full, please email NCVLI at ncvli@lclark.edu to be placed on the waiting list.)

**The National Alliance of Victims’ Rights Attorneys (NAVRA) is NCVLI’s Bar Association of practitioners committed to the protection, enforcement, and advancement of crime victims’ rights nationwide.  Membership provides numerous benefits including access to free webinar trainings, and it may also include a $50 discount for select in-person trainings during 2012.  Click on the "Join" tab above to join NAVRA today!