Introduction
Research Questions
- When Do Judges Make Reasonable Efforts Findings?
A judge’s reasonable efforts decisions at child welfare hearings may avoid separating families and help children achieve permanency faster. As a result, judges play a critical role in child welfare cases. The Reasonable Efforts Findings Study (REFS) aimed to better understand how judges’ reasonable efforts decisions relate to case outcomes for children.
This brief describes when judges make reasonable efforts to prevent removal and reasonable efforts to achieve permanency findings, including timing of the findings and the hearings at which the findings are made.
Purpose
This infographic describes key findings and takeaways from the REFS Study relating to judges’ findings whether the child welfare agency made reasonable efforts to prevent removal and reasonable efforts to achieve permanency.
Key Findings and Highlights
- Most cases (96 percent) had a reasonable efforts to prevent removal finding made at some point during the case, usually at the initial hearing.
- Most judges make the reasonable efforts to achieve permanency findings required by federal and state statutes within 12 months.
- Judges addressed reasonable efforts to achieve permanency early in the case—84% made reasonable efforts to achieve permanency findings by the first review hearing.
Methods
We collected data in two ways:
Observing a random sample of recorded initial court hearings to capture information about hearing quality (e.g., judicial engagement of parents, topics discussed).
Reviewing court case files from the same cases to capture information on case characteristics (e.g., child age, petition allegations), reasonable efforts findings, details of findings and documents submitted to the court, timing of hearings, and case outcomes.
We collected data from a random sample of 348 closed child welfare court cases from 5 sites in 3 states.
Citation
Chiamulera, C. & Klain, E. (2024). When do Judges Make Reasonable Efforts Findings? Key Results from the Reasonable Efforts Findings Study (OPRE Report No. 2024-351). Washington, DC: Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation, Administration for Children and Families, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.