Children and the Law Section
Annual Report
2021-2022
Section Membership
As of June 14, 2022 the Section has 198 members.
Financial Status
The Section had an account balance of 10,842.89 as of April 30, 2022.
CLEs & Events
The Section hosted 15 CLEs in fiscal year 2021-22.
| Program Title | Date | Event Code | CLE Credits | Attendees | Virtual/ In-person/ Hybrid |
| From Juvenile to Youth, Justice and Wellness Divisions - Ramsey County’s Journey to Approach Juvenile Justice from a more restorative perspective | 03/04/2022 | 444090 | 1.0 Standard | 25 | Virtual |
| Restorative Justice for Youth in the 3rd District | 03/01/2022 | 443958 | 1.0 Standard | 10 | Virtual |
| Restorative Justice in Robbinsdale Area Schools | 02/25/2022 | 444603 | 1.0 Standard | 15 | Virtual |
| Transformative and Racial Justice at Ujamaa Place - Bridging the Gap between Childhood and Adulthood | 02/23/2022 | 441376 | 1.0 Standard | 12 | Virtual |
| Diversion of Somali and African Youth from the Juvenile Court System in Hennepin County | 02/18/2022 | 443744 | 1.0 Standard | 14 | Virtual |
| A Transformative Vision for Youth Justice | 02/14/2022 | 444088 | 1.0 Standard | 10 | Virtual |
| Understanding and Applying New Family First Prevention Services Act (FFPSA) Requirements for QRTP Placements | 02/07/2022 | 441254 | 1.0 Standard | 13 | Virtual |
| Moving Beyond the County Home School - - Juvenile Out of Home Placements and Opportunities for Change | 01/31/2022 | 443674 | 1.0 Elimination of Bias | 34 | Virtual |
| Vicarious Trauma, Compassion Fatigue, and Self-Care in the Legal Profession | 01/26/2022 | 430087 | 1.0 Standard | 46 | Virtual |
| Children and the Law Section Annual State of the Child Summit - Centering Perspectives from Families and Children in the Child Protection System | 10/08/2021 | 409703 | 3.0 Standard, 1.0 Elimination of Bias | 56 | Virtual |
| Children and the Law Section’s Appellate CHIPS CLE Series | Best written and oral argument practices in appeals of CHIPS and permanency matters | 09/27/2021 | 409715 | 1.0 Standard | 23 | Virtual |
| Children and the Law Section’s Appellate CHIPS CLE Series | Maltreatment appeals and opportunities for reform. | 09/22/2021 | 409714 | 1.0 Standard | 20 | Virtual |
| Children and the Law Section’s Appellate CHIPS CLE Series | Post-permanency appeals | 09/16/2021 | 409713 | 1.0 Standard | 18 | Virtual |
| Children and the Law Section’s Appellate CHIPS CLE Series | Identifying issues for appeal in CHIPS and permanency cases | 09/15/2021 | 409712 | 1.0 Standard | 21 | Virtual |
| Children and the Law Section’s Appellate CHIPS CLE Series |Best practices for preserving the CHIPS trial court record for appeal | 09/13/2021 | 409711 | 1.0 Standard | 21 | Virtual |
Annual Meeting and Election Results
The Section’s Annual Meeting was held on May 12, 2022 at 8:00 am on Zoom.
The following officers were elected to serve on the Section’s Governing Council from 7/1/2022 to 6/30/2023:
- Chair: Cresston Gackle, Cresston Law LLC
- Vice-Chair: Jennifer Thompson, JLT Law & Mediation
- Secretary-Treasurer: Nathaniel Gurol, Autism Advocacy and Law Center LLC
The following council members were elected to serve on the Section’s Governing Council from 7/1/2022 to 6/30/2024:
- Robert Webber, Webber Law Firm 2.0
The following council members are serving existing two-year term from 7/1/2021 to 6/30/2023:
- Azure Schermerhorn-Snyder, Minnesota Continuing Legal Education
- Wendy Watson
Thank-you to our outgoing council members:
- Lilian Ejebe, Southern Minnesota Regional Legal Services
- Rebecca Wanous, Autism Advocacy and Law Center
Diversity, Equity and Inclusion
The Section pursued goals of diversity, equity and inclusion within the law, profession, and organization by engaging with community organizations whose core values and mission align with these goals. Specifically, as shown by the slate of CLEs hosted this past bar year, including two for elimination of bias credit, the Section placed a greater emphasis on inviting and providing a platform for organizations whose goals are to advance racial equity and justice for system-involved families and youth and address the disparities by race and wealth that exist within juvenile court systems.
Further, the Section sought to collaborate with affinity bar organizations to collaborate on programming and section initiatives. Following contact with TCDIP’s WILD initiative, the Section advocated for making the Page Amendment a legislative priority of the MSBA and a legislative position of the Section only. Both attempts were unsuccessful at this time due to votes against these proposals by the MSBA Assembly and the MSBA Council.
If you are interested in sharing your perspective, time, and energy with us on these goals and initiatives, please reach out to the Section Council members.
Other Section Accomplishment
Related to the CLEs noted above, the Section was able to record most of these CLEs and make them available for later viewing via the MSBA’s On Demand CLE archive.
Submitted By:
Cresston Gackle, Section Chair
Date: June 15, 2022