Legal Advocacy

Abstract

Since the early days of the Warren Court, the courts have been identified by friends and foes alike as instruments of social change. They have become actively involved in running schools,¹ jails and prisons,² and facilities for the mentally ill and the mentally retarded.³ Although the more conservative Burger Court has shown some distaste for some of the standards established in law by the Supreme Court in the fifties and sixties, it has shown little inclination to undercut altogether the work of the Warren Court in such areas as criminal procedure⁴ and desegregation⁵. In short, the courts, especially the federal courts, remain an avenue for redress of grievances of disadvantaged groups, including children. This chapter will examine problems attached to such use of the legal system and provide a review of changes in the status of minors achieved through the courts.