SOI# 008 Attorney for The Child - Child Protection and Primary Provider of Juvenile Defense (NYC)

The New York State Unified Court System (UCS), Office of Court Administration (OCA) seeks letters of interest from eligible non-profit legal service organizations to become the primary citywide provider representing children in child protection and juvenile defense matters in the New York City Family Court and in appeals in proceedings originating in the Family Court.

The primary provider will share the caseload with other institutional providers and attorneys who serve on panels managed by the Appellate Divisions. OCA intends to contract with one or more secondary provider in each NY City County for juvenile defense representation to handle matters in which the primary provider has a conflict of interest or there are multiple respondents requiring separate representation. OCA also intends to contract with a primary provider of AFC representation for child custody and visitation matters in each county.

Background Information

Article 2, part 4 of the Family Court Act §241 provides that minors who are the subject of Family Court proceedings or appeals in proceedings originating in the Family Court should be represented by counsel of their own choosing or by an assigned counsel, as it is recognized that children “require the assistance of counsel to help protect their interests and to help them express their wishes to the court.”

In the Family Court, the cost of assigned counsel is borne by the state through appropriations to the judiciary. The UCS meets this obligation through the attorney for the child (AFC) program, which consists of two parts: (i) panels of attorneys (or contracted attorneys) designated by the respective Departments of the Appellate Division and (ii) the subject of this solicitation: institutions that provide Attorney for the Child services under contract with the OCA. Pursuant to §243(a) the OCA is authorized to enter contracts with “legal aid societies” [1] to provide AFC services.

The OCA seeks institutional providers of AFC services who will implement a holistic representation approach. The holistic approach typically includes teams comprised of attorneys, social workers, and paraprofessionals to provide comprehensive legal advice, advocacy and support to children who are the subject of child welfare and juvenile defense matters.

Contract Term and Funding

UCS seeks letters of interest from organizations interested in contracting with the OCA for a term expected to commence on or about January 1, 2026, and continuing through December 31, 2030. § 127.5 of the Rules of the Chief Administrative Judge states that the number of children represented at any given time by an attorney appointed pursuant to §249 of the Family Court Act shall not exceed 150 (hereinafter “the standard”).

The OCA anticipates that the primary provider will represent an average daily census of approximately 10,000 children. The OCA will provide an allocation for the initial annual period in the contract term based on an historical analysis of the number of filings, dispositions, and pending child welfare and juvenile defense matters in New York City Family Court. The OCA will allocate funding to the contractor sufficient to support staff attorneys, supervisory and support staff, indirect costs, occupancy costs and other than personnel services expenses to promote compliance with the standard. Annual allocations shall be limited by available appropriations.

The contractor shall be responsible for managing resources and for allocating cases among staff attorneys to promote the effective representation of children and to distribute assignments such that the average workload of each attorney in the office remains in compliance with the standard whenever practicable.

For subsequent annual periods, the OCA will review the workload of the contractor and will take steps to promote ongoing compliance with the standard.

Eligible Providers

Eligible contractors are limited to non-profit legal service organizations. The organization must have sufficient staff attorneys with experience representing children in the New York City Family Court or provide a detailed plan as to how the organization will retain staff to provide the services.

To indicate interest in and eligibility to provide these services, please send a letter of interest, which includes the necessary components listed below to the email address below by 2 p.m. Eastern on Thursday, August 7, 2025 .

1. Describe the organization’s current capacity to provide legal representation for children who are the subject of child protection and juvenile defense matters in the five counties of New York City based on the number of children anticipated to be assigned and/or steps the organization would take to recruit a sufficient staff of professionals with the requisite experience to provide the representation services.

1. Describe any ancillary support such as social workers, paralegals or other services that the organization will implement to promote quality representation.

1. Describe the supervisory structure that will be implemented to promote quality representation. Include bios of key managerial staff that will oversee the program.

1. Include the following information to establish the organization’s eligibility:

• Documentation of the organization’s non-profit status.

• The organization’s mission statement.

• A list of current board members.

• The organization’s most recent audited financial statements.

• If any government entity terminated a contract with the organization or suspended or debarred the organization from participation in future government contracts, the letter of intent must include a detailed explanation of the circumstances.

The letter of interest and required documents should be sent by 2:00pm Eastern on Thursday, August 7, 2025 to:

Jillian Halse

Court Analyst

jhalse@nycourts.gov

Please write “SOI #008 AFC, Child Protection and Juvenile Defense Matters - New York City Family Court” in the subject line.