Legal Roles and Responsibilities: Cause Numbers and …childwelfare.iu.edu/cat/DCS09035/DCS09035.pdf · Legal Roles and Responsibilities: Cause Numbers and Case Files Friday, January

Legal Roles and Responsibilities: Cause Numbers and Case Files

Friday, January 02, 2015

Page 1 of 23

Slide 1 - Welcome

Slide notes

Welcome to the Legal Roles and Responsibilities: Cause Numbers and Case Files training. Developed and presented by the Indiana Child Welfare Education and Training Partnership.



Page 2 of 23

Slide 2 - Introduction

Slide notes

In today’s training, we will address Cause Numbers and Case Files. By the end of this tutorial you will be able to: Identify the parts of a Cause number and identify what each part means, Identify whose name to file cases under when going to court, Differentiate between Public and Confidential Information, Identify exceptions to DCS case file confidentiality, Differentiate between Privileged and Discoverable Information, Identify how Privileged information can become Discoverable.



Page 3 of 23

Slide 3 - Worksheet Icon

Slide notes

There is a Cause Numbers and Case Files worksheet in your Legal Roles and Responsibilities folder. At the end of this tutorial, you will write a reflection in your worksheet to use during new worker cohort training. You will see this icon appear on a slide when you are required to write an answer on your worksheet.



Page 4 of 23

Slide 4 - About Cause Numbers and Case Files

Slide notes

You can tell a lot about a court case by its Cause Number. Consider the following Cause Number: 49D09-06-05-JC-111. Each number and letter tells something about the case.



Page 5 of 23

Slide 5 - Cause Numbers - County

Slide notes

In this Cause Number, 49 means the county in which the cause is filed.



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Slide 6 - Cause Numbers - Court

Slide notes

‘D’ means the court in which the cause is heard. In this scenario, the ‘D’ designates the superior court. The numbers ‘09’ indicate which court room. In this scenario, the cause is heard in the ninth Superior Court in Marion County. D09 is the court in Marion County that hears juvenile cases. It is important to note that each county hears juvenile cases in different courts. While you are in county, you will need to find out which courts in your respective counties hear the juvenile cases. Consult with your supervisor about which courts in your respective counties hear the juvenile cases. You will be asked to write the answer on your Cause Numbers and Case File worksheet that is located in your Legal Roles and Responsibilities folder.



Page 7 of 23

Slide 7 - Cause Numbers - Year

Slide notes

In this Cause Number, 06 means the year in which the cause is filed.



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Slide 8 - Cause Numbers - Month

Slide notes

In this Cause Number, 05 means the month in which the cause is filed.



Page 9 of 23

Slide 9 - Cause Numbers - Case Type

Slide notes

In this Cause Number, JC indicates the case type. There are six different case types.



Page 10 of 23

Slide 10 - Case Types

Slide notes

Case types relevant to your role as an FCM are: JC - Juvenile Chins case, JD - Juvenile Delinquency case, JM - Juvenile Miscellaneous for detention, reviews, Informal Adjustments, DR - Divorce case, JT - Termination of Parental Rights case, and GU - Guardianship case.



Page 11 of 23

Slide 11 - Cause Numbers - Case Number

Slide notes

In this Cause Number, 111 indicates the sequential case number of this cause.



Page 12 of 23

Slide 12 - Important Note

Slide notes

Important Note! Attorneys and FCMs file court cases by the child’s name. FCMs create case files, in Magic by the mother’s name.



Page 13 of 23

Slide 13 - Case Types

Slide notes

While most Indiana State records are public; for example DCS policies, salaries, and FCM names, DCS case files are not public record. Exceptions in- IC 31-33-18, make DCS case files confidential.



Page 14 of 23

Slide 14 - Case File Confidentiality Exceptions

Slide notes

There are exceptions to DCS case file confidentiality: Parties to the case, Prosecutors, Law enforcement– only if they are investigating the same case. Other DCS workers – includes across counties, CASA/GAL, Perpetrators can get limited info from the 311 report, and Attorney/Client privilege is protected.



Page 15 of 23

Slide 15 - Privileged Information

Slide notes

The DCS attorney represents the agency. As employees of the agency, your communication with the attorney is considered privileged and will not be shared with the parents’ attorneys who make a request for discovery. Privileged information is confidential information. Privileged information cannot be introduced into court.



Page 16 of 23

Slide 16 - Privileged vs. Discoverable

Slide notes

Privileged information cannot be introduced into court. But, discoverable information can be introduced into court. Discoverable information is not confidential. Privileged information can become discoverable if an FCM is not careful.



Page 17 of 23


Slide notes

Privileged information can become discoverable if an FCM is not careful. Allowing privileged information to become discoverable is an easy mistake to make particularly now that the agency emphasizes the teaming approach to cases.



Page 18 of 23


Slide notes

Privileged information can become discoverable if an FCM: Includes the attorney in a “group” email to service providers. Forwards an email from the DCS attorney to other parties. When other individuals receive the information, there is no expectation of confidentiality and, therefore no privilege. Once other individuals see the information it becomes discoverable and can be introduced into court.



Page 19 of 23


Slide notes

Privileged information can become discoverable if an FCM: Cuts and pastes an email between themselves and the attorney into contacts. Contacts are discoverable. Never copy and paste attorney emails into your contacts. Record that you had a contact with the attorney, but exclude any specific details regarding what was said.



Page 20 of 23


Slide notes

Privileged information can become discoverable if an FCM: Invites CASA, or other non-DCS team members to “sit in” on a meeting between themselves, and the DCS Attorney. Invites the DCS attorney to join a Child and Family Team Meeting. Again, because a third party who is not a DCS employee heard the information, there is no expectation of privacy, and therefore, the privilege is waived.



Page 21 of 23

Slide 21 - Reflective Questions

Slide notes

A good rule of thumb, is that if you are talking with the DCS attorney about a DCS case, do not include any non-DCS employees in the exchange of information. How does a case file go from privileged to discoverable? What does it mean for a case if files go from privileged to discoverable? How will you prevent this from happening?



Page 22 of 23

Slide 22 - Juvenile Cases

Slide notes

Don’t forget to ask your supervisor about which courts in your respective counties, hear juvenile cases. Write the answer on your worksheet, below the Reflective Questions.



Page 23 of 23

lide 23 - Thank you!

Slide notes

Thank you for participating! ELM will reflect your completion of this training within 24-48 hours. Developed and presented by the Child Welfare Education and Training Partnership.

Documents

Legal Roles and Responsibilities: Cause Numbers and …childwelfare.iu.edu/cat/DCS09035/DCS09035.pdf · Legal Roles and Responsibilities: Cause Numbers and Case Files Friday, January