Brevard County Dependency Court

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MISSION

The momentum of Florida's Dependency Court Improvement Program continues with our receipt of an additional commitment of federal funds to support our initiatives through the year 2005. Under the leadership of the judiciary, we want to lead the national movement to institutionalize standards of excellence for safe and permanent outcomes for children who are abused, neglected or abandoned. One Year to Permanency is the charge to our child protection community. A sense of urgency must never be forgotten for any child in the system. The complexity of our child protection statutes, limitations in availability of resources, unique needs of parents and their children, and the many professionals who share responsibilities in the outcome of cases present challenges that are unparalleled in other divisions of court.

It is the job of our program staff to develop and implement strategies designed to assist local courts in carrying out the requirements of our statutes and rules. The following sources guide our activities:

o The Supreme Court Dependency Court Improvement Committee
o Court Improvement Federal Grant Guidelines for the fiscal year
o The Family Courts Steering Committee
o The Guardian Ad Litem Management Subcommittee
o Collaboration with the Department of Children and Families
o The Judicial Management Council of the Supreme Court
o Judicial Education and Training Initiatives of the OSCA

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Projects Update

In 1998 we combined Florida's two main child protection statutes into one chapter, Chapter 39, and brought that chapter into compliance with the Federal Adoptions and Safe Families Act. The 1999 follow-up corrected problems that became apparent after 6 months of implementation of the combined statute. During the 2000 legislative session, we focused on clarifying and reorganizing the portion of Chapter 39 that deals with the permanency options for Florida's dependent children, along with some additional corrections that were not discovered in time for the previous year's clean-up bill. A decision was made not to pursue legislative changes for the 2001 or 2002 session, due in large part to the fact that our child protection community has assimilated tremendous changes in the law during the last three years. It was felt that the most prudent action at this time would be preserving the laws as currently written in order to allow time for a meaningful assessment on the impact of the changes.

Training and Education

The fifth annual Dependency Court Improvement Conference occurred on August 28 - 30, 2001 at the Peabody Hotel in Orlando. This statewide meeting of judges and child protection professionals has grown from attendance of 300 individuals by invitation only at the first annual event, to 1,200 in 2001. This conference, planned jointly with the Department of Children and Families, offered an update of the new statutory changes in our child protection laws, numerous workshops which focused on resource needs, and meetings by judicial circuit to continue the development of local court community improvement plans under the leadership of the judges. Without federal court improvement grant funding, it would not have been possible for the state courts system.

Bench Book for Dependency Judges

With the sweeping changes to our child protection statutes which have also resulted in an increased review of cases by judges, the production of a guidebook is essential. We have already provided checklists for judges to use at each stage of a dependency action that will serve as the framework for the bench book. A compliment of relevant case law will be included. This project will be developed jointly with a team of dependency judges and be ready for distribution by the end of the year.

Our initial dependency court assessment which concluded in 1997, has provided a comprehensive analysis of dependency cases from the initial stage of a proceeding when a child and family is first involved in court to the final outcome on the trial court level. It is now time to study the management and processing of children when the courts of appeal are accessed. Anecdotal information on the delays for many children when permanency decisions hang on the response time for affirmation or overruling of trial court decisions suggest the necessity for such a study. The completion of automated case tracking system in the five district courts of appeal in Florida should result in relatively uncomplicated access to identified cases for analysis and development of recommendations to improve the appellate process for children. This assessment is scheduled to begin in the fall of 2002.

Model Dependency Court Pilots

During the 2000 legislative session and continuing in the 2001 legislative session, model dependency courts were established in a total of five of our twenty judicial circuits. Each circuit received additional funding to improve the manner in which children alleged to be abused, abandoned or neglected move through the court system. The original legislative language required general masters to be hired in each circuit to hear cases referred by the presiding judge and thus to promote permanency for children. Language was ultimately dropped from the bill, but a specific appropriation for the first three pilots was passed during the 2000 session. Two additional circuits received pilot funding during the 2001 session. Pilots were funded as follows:

Eighteenth Judicial Circuit - New Project: $499,736
Technology Enhancement $168,500

Because the goals of model dependency courts are consistent with the efforts of the Children's Court Improvement program of the Office of the State Courts Administrator, the Children's Court Improvement Program (CCIP) provides technical assistance and guidance to each circuit.

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ABOUT THE SEMINOLE PROGRAM

Partners: It is our job, with the assistance of many partners to develop and implement strategies designed to assist the children and families who are part of our dependency court. This is done by collaborations with Office of Court Improvement (OSCA), court administration, judicial education and training, and open partnerships with the Seminole County Sheriff's Office, Child Protective Services Division, Community Based Care of Seminole, Human Services Associates, Guardian Ad Litem Program of Seminole County, Family Focus and many other community service agencies. There are quarterly meetings of the stakeholders involved in dependency court to work out issues and problems to ensure the safety and well being of the children who are currently in the dependency court system..

Training and Education: The General Magistrate and the Senior Court Coordinator from the Dependency Court attended the 2006 Family Court Conference held August 3 and 4. The Court Conferences Focus was to help attendees to discover tools to effect a paradigm shift in thinking or in other words to see our dependency system through the eyes of a child. The conference offered 40 pertinent workshops and programs to educate and inspire participants. Justice Barbara J. Pariente provided the opening and closing remarks for the two-day conference. The General Magistrate attends continuing education classes throughout the year to stay abreast of the latest laws pertaining to dependency and family law cases.

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Resources and Staff Contact Information

Harry T. and Harriette V. Moore Justice Center
2825 Judge Fran Jamieson Way
Viera, FL 32940
Phone: 321-633-2171
Fax: 321-633-2172

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Calendars

Schedule of Events, Dockets, and More

Judges CalendarsThe Eighteenth Circuit Utilizes several Calendar Systems, including the JACS system. Please Note: that not all judges post their calendars online.

Presentation Cart SchedulePresentation Equipment is available in most courtrooms. Please Note: that not all schedules are posted online.

Most Requested Forms

Family and Civil Courts

• FAMILY FORMS (From Supreme Court)
  DIVORCE FORMS (Seminole County)
  FORECLOSURE MEDIATION (Brevard)
  FORECLOSURE MEDIATION (Seminole)
  FLORIDA SUPREME COURT (JOSHUA)
  FLORIDA RULES OF CIVIL PROCEDURE
  FLORIDA STATUTES AND CONSTITUTION
  DEPARTMENT OF REVENUE CHILD SUPPORT ENFORCEMENT
  FLORIDA BAR ASSOCIATION FAMILY LAW SECTION
  LOCAL PRACTICE MANUALS
  

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