Legal Recourse Network (LRN)
Hold Systems & People Accountable
LRN’s primary purpose is to provide legal recourse (not resource), and its secondary purpose is to be a Family Advocate for CPS-involved families. Systemic failures persist because systems operate without fear of being held accountable and because legal aid is unavailable for CPS-related cases.
Many people may have valid and substantial legal claims against CPS and family court, but very few have the financial resources to bring legal action against a government entity, people who work for a system (case managers, judges, etc..), or professionals (lawyers, custody evaluators, etc..) who were paid for their services related to their case.
Many others, low- and middle-income alike, often find themselves at the mercy of the CPS and do not have the financial resources necessary to protect their children or themselves from harm. LRN intends to correct both these miscarriages of justice.
The intent is to establish a legal investment fund, “Legal Fund”, that, along with a representing lawyer or law firm, would share the legal expense of filing and litigating a legal action for selected legal cases with a high likelihood of a favorable ruling and award. Similar to traditional contingency fee agreements, awards would be split between the Legal Fund, litigating attorney/firm, and plaintiff.
While initial Legal Fund funding would need to be raised through donations or grants, the longer-term intent is the Legal Fund would be self-sustaining. The Legal Fund’s portion of the awards would cover future litigation expenses and the costs of providing Family Advocates for CPS-involved families.
To create the Legal Recourse Network and Legal Fund, many financial, legal, entity, and other questions need to be answered. In the coming months, COR intends to work with others to answer these questions and establish both programs as effective solutions for holding systems accountable and protecting families from harmful systems.
