Children’s Law Center (CLC) was established in 1995 to increase the effectiveness of child advocacy in Minnesota. CLC works to stabilize and protect foster and at-risk youth in three ways:
1. Direct Representation - CLC is the only private organization in Minnesota that provides direct pro bono legal representation exclusively to children. Along with a team of over 300 volunteer attorneys, CLC ensures that foster children receive the services to which they are entitled.
2. Systemic Reform – CLC actively advocates for systemic changes and improvements to better serve at-risk and foster care youth. CLC has been successful in influencing policy and law changes on the state and county levels.
3. Education - CLC offers trainings and has developed a suite of informational “Know Your Rights” pamphlets, available at schools, shelters, and community organizations that work with at-risk youth.
CLC is committed to ensuring that at-risk youth have a parallel community of support, engaged and interested in their wellbeing. With this in place, children are more stable and less likely to be in precarious home situations. It is our experience that, when foster youth are safe and live in a supportive environment, they can succeed – an expectation that can be met. To that end, CLC will continue to provide services to improve the stability of our most vulnerable population, and advocate for effective systemic reform on their behalf.