Guardian ad Litem Program

The Guardian ad Litem (GAL) Program prepares attorneys to provide legal representation to abused and neglected children throughout the state. The Administrative Office of the Courts has overseen the GAL Program since 1999. The goal of the program is to produce highly qualified guardians ad litem by offering training sessions, providing educational materials and serving as a comprehensive resource.

More than 6,000 Kentucky children are in state custody because they have been removed from their homes due to abuse or neglect. Federal and state laws mandate that these children be placed in permanent homes. Guardians ad litem play an important role in ensuring that children receive fair and expeditious attention from the judicial system and are placed in appropriate homes in a timely manner.

The Administrative Office of the Courts’ Department of Juvenile Services is accepting registrants for guardian ad litem training that it will present in June and July. The training will be offered four times and will be conducted in Lexington, Hazard and Hopkinsville. There is no cost to attend, but space is limited. Attendees will earn 6.5 credit hours toward their continuing legal education requirement, including one hour of ethics.

The training dates and locations are:

June 12 – Fayette County Circuit Courthouse in Lexington (advanced curriculum training)
June 27 – Fayette County Circuit Courthouse in Lexington
July 17 – Hazard Community and Technical College
July 31 – Christian County District Courthouse in Hopkinsville

The training curriculum gives a child’s attorney an overview of Kentucky statutory and case law. The course also focuses on the federal law that requires reasonable efforts to keep families together and provide children with safe and permanent homes. 

The AOC and the Cabinet for Health and Family Services offer a guardian ad litem training seminar at several locations throughout Kentucky each year. The AOC has been responsible for preparing attorneys to provide legal representation to abused and neglected children throughout the commonwealth since 1999. The goal of the program is to produce highly qualified guardians ad litem by providing training sessions and educational materials and having the AOC serve as a comprehensive resource. 

To register, please fax your name, title, mailing address, phone number, e-mail address and Kentucky Bar Association number to J.R. Hopson at 502-573-1412 or call him at the AOC at 1-800-928-2350 ext. 2168.