Improving Permanency Outcomes One Hearing at a Time: A Study of Indiana’s CHINS Proceedings

By Jamie Devine, Court Improvement Program Administrator | Office of Court Services, Children & Families Division

High-quality court hearings play a critical role in achieving timely, safe permanency outcomes for children involved in Child in Need of Services cases. To better understand how these hearings are conducted in practice, the Indiana Court Improvement Program partnered with the Indiana Department of Child Services and the American Bar Association in 2025 to conduct a multi-site study examining the quality of CHINS hearings in Indiana.

The goals of the study were to:

• Analyze the current child welfare practice in each of three pilot counties: Allen, Scott, and Wabash
• Work with the counties to identify actionable insights to improve the efficacy of hearings
• Improve practice by sharing key findings and recommendations with system stakeholders, including judicial officers, DCS, GAL/CASA, and the Indiana Public Defender Council

CIP and DCS selected counties to participate in the study based on geographic location, population, and judicial buy-in to ensure sufficient variation while maintaining a manageable scope for data collection. CIP partnered with ABA-affiliated researcher Dr. Alicia Summers to develop a structured hearing observation tool grounded in the National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges’ Enhanced Resource Guidelines. The guidelines provide best practice guidance to judicial officers on conducting quality CHINS hearings.

Data Collection Procedures

CIP and Dr. Summers trained three certified senior judges with expertise in juvenile law to conduct hearing observations. The senior judges were already working with CIP as Jurists in Residence (JIRs) to provide expert consultation and mentorship to judicial officers and CIP staff. Each JIR observed approximately 50 hearings in their assigned county. The JIRs listened to the audio record for most of the hearings and observed a small sample of hearings in person. The JIRs observed CHINS initial, detention, disposition, review, and permanency hearings, and they scored the hearings for the following components:

• Engagement and attendance of parties
• Judicial engagement
• Level of discussion
• Judicial practice
• Judicial findings on the record
• Practice of the attorney(s) for parents
• Practice of the advocate for the child
• Practice of the DCS attorney

CIP staff worked with Dr. Summers to collate and analyze the data. Dr. Summers then prepared individual reports with findings for each county, as well as a multi-site aggregate report.

Study Results and Recommendations

Key findings include:

• Only 2% of hearings were continued
• At the majority of hearings where a parent was present, judges spoke directly to parents and gave them the opportunity to be heard
• Judges regularly engaged in discussions about barriers to achieving permanency, concrete steps to achieve permanency, and agency efforts
• Youth were present at only 5% of hearings
• Foster parents or relative caregivers were present at only 6% of hearings
• The advocate for the youth often did not present information on the record or stated simply that they agreed with DCS
• Attorneys for parents were rarely present at initial hearings

Based on these findings, the JIRs developed targeted recommendations designed to strengthen courtroom practice and improve outcomes for children and families. The JIRs shared the study results with the participating judge in each county and offered the opportunity for one-on-one feedback. While these recommendations are tailored to the participating counties, stakeholders across the state may benefit from several, such as:

• To help facilitate understanding, communicate clearly and in plain language
• When addressing parties or case participants, use their names rather than terms such as “Mother/Father/Child” or “Petitioner/Respondent” to foster a welcoming courtroom environment
• Hold all parties accountable to increase the likelihood of follow-through on court orders and case plans
• Ensure the youth’s wishes are known and reflected in court discussions and considered in decision making
• Provide youth with the opportunity to participate in court hearings in a manner that aligns with their preference and best interests (for example, attending in person or submitting a youth court report)
• Foster parents and relative caregivers often have pertinent information about the children in their care; ensure they are notified of hearings and given the opportunity to attend and be heard
• Incorporate an assessment of risk at every hearing to maintain a focus on the child’s safety and well-being
• Encourage parties to present all key information on the record, even if it was previously submitted in writing, to promote transparency and informed decision-making

To help ensure continuous quality improvement, the JIRs presented these findings and recommendations to judicial officers, DCS attorneys and staff, the state office of GAL/CASA, and the Indiana Public Defender Council.

Ongoing Opportunities

These findings present a valuable tool for continuous quality improvement in courts across Indiana. Judicial officers and system partners are encouraged to use the results to reflect on current practice and identify opportunities for growth.

In addition, JIRs are available to work with individual judicial officers to conduct hearing observations and provide one-on-one feedback at no cost to counties or courts. Judicial officers interested may contact [email protected].