Families Belong Together

Family Preparedness

Public Counsel believes that families belong together. We are working to help families at risk of separation because of deportation to make a plan that is right for their family. This may include planning for long-term care under a guardianship, or ensuring that families are able to reunite in their country of origin. 

We have developed know-your-rights materials as well as community trainings to guide families through these tough decisions. We are also sponsoring legislation, AB 495, that will provide parents with greater options when it comes to planning for their children’s care.

Preventive Legal Advocacy

Public Counsel is also working to reimagine the child welfare system in Los Angeles County, transforming it from one that punishes families in crisis to one that provides supportive resources to help families remain safely together. As a leader in developing a countywide pre-petition legal services model, we address the underlying challenges—such as poverty, housing instability, domestic violence, and inadequate healthcare access—that often trigger child welfare involvement. Our approach directly confronts the racial disparities in the system, where Black and Brown families disproportionately experience surveillance and separation. By providing early, community-centered legal support, we aim to interrupt harmful patterns and replace them with advocacy, dignity, and care.

Our preventive model includes initiatives such as ParentSupportLine.org, a website co-created with parents and youth with lived experience, offering accessible legal information and community resources. By empowering families to proactively navigate child welfare investigations, we reduce trauma and promote stability through early intervention.

We also highlight the harms of fragmented court systems, where families—especially low-income families of color—often face custody cases in probate court without access to legal representation, reunification services, or adequate judicial oversight. Through public education, policy advocacy, and preventive legal services, we help families understand their rights and secure the support they need before formal court intervention occurs.

We engage in policy advocacy at the local, state, and national levels to address challenges that plague the front end of the child welfare system, including addressing the issue of hidden foster care, how the child welfare system fails to support survivors of domestic violence, concerns with mandated reporting, and the over-surveillance of pregnant people.

If your family is facing involvement with child protective services, Public Counsel provides preventive legal resources to help you understand your rights and stay safely together. For immediate legal information and community-based resources, visit ParentSupportLine.org.

To request direct legal assistance for planning for a possible separation due to a deportation, call us at (213) 385-2977, ext. 311, and leave a message. A member of our team will contact you to discuss your legal needs.