A New Day for Children
By Justice Debra H. Lehrmann
It is a new day for our most precious resource—our children. The
creation of the State Bar of Texas Child Protection Law Section became a
reality on January 26, when the State Bar of Texas Board of Directors
voted unanimously to form the new section. Both the Family Law and
Juvenile Law sections enthusiastically supported this effort. This
significant accomplishment represents decades of hard work on the part
of many legal professionals throughout the state who are committed to
improving the lives of children.
The history of child welfare protection law is relatively brief.
Traditionally, children had few rights, with full authority over their
lives being vested in their parents. A paradigm shift began in the 1960s
with the help of several Supreme Court decisions extending certain
constitutional rights to children. During the 1960s, the Department of
Public Welfare began to deal head-on with abuse and neglect in Texas. In
1962, the U.S. Congress defined abuse and neglect in the child welfare
provisions of the Public Welfare Amendments to the Social Security Act.
And in 1974, the federal movement to prevent child abuse and neglect
began in earnest with the creation of the Child Abuse Prevention and
Treatment Act. This act created the National Center on Child Abuse and
Neglect and provided federal funding to state child-protection agencies.
Thankfully, the historical treatment of children as chattel has given
way to our current recognition that children are individuals entitled to
protection and respect. Today society realizes that children are
frequently innocent participants in events over which they have no
control and from which they must be sheltered. Two competing realities
present real challenges in this area of the law: (1) children frequently
lack the maturity and knowledge necessary to protect themselves and to
make appropriate decisions, and (2) children are worthy individuals
entitled to varying degrees of independence, deference, and respect
depending upon their maturity levels.
As a jurist who has devoted much professional time to helping children,
I am proud beyond words of this meaningful action taken by the State
Bar. The willingness of the bar to create and support this section
reflects society’s move toward recognition of children as autonomous
beings with individual needs, desires, feelings, and concerns. I admire
the State Bar of Texas for rising to the challenge—our children deserve
it.TBJ
DEBRA H. LEHRMANN
is a justice of the Supreme Court of Texas and the inaugural chair of
the State Bar of Texas Child Protection Law Section.
