In 2016, we intervened in the suit to object to the proposed settlement with the state defendant before the District Court. Working with all other institutional parent and children’s representatives in Family Court, we successfully persuaded the District Court to reject the settlement, which would have potentially precluded any systemic lawsuits about any aspect of the foster care system for seven years and which failed to provide meaningful relief with respect to the claims against the state.

Most recently, The Legal Aid Society filed an amicus brief in the Second Circuit in support of Plaintiffs’ appeal of the District Court’s denial of class certification. In our brief, we argued that if the District Court’s decision were allowed to stand, it would have jeopardized the viability of class action litigation on behalf of children in governmental custody more broadly, depriving New York’s most vulnerable citizens of what is often their only means to vindicate their rights to basic liberties, including freedom from harm while in government care. The Second Circuit agreed, ruling in September 2023 that the lower court had abused its discretion in applying the commonality and typicality factors for class certification.