The Oregon Child Advocacy Project at the University of Oregon School of Law pursues legal change to protect children's interests. Faculty and students associated with CAP work on legislative proposals and provide research assistance and consultation to attorneys in cases that advance the goals of the project.  CAP also sponsors educational programs for students and attorneys throughout the year. The Project does not represent individual clients or give advice to private individuals.

On Nov. 9, 2009, the Supreme Court heard oral arguments about whether the Eighth Amendment prohibition on cruel and unusual punishment precludes sentencing a person to life without the possibility of parole for a crime committed while the person was a minor. At noon that day, the Child Advocacy Project presented two experts who spoke about the legal and psychological principles that underlie this issue. Click here for audio recordings of their comments, background information about the cases, and transcripts of the oral arguments.

Each year, four to six UO law students are chosen to be Campbell or KLC Child Advocacy Fellows. The Fellows receive stipends to help pay for their legal education, and they work on the Project's educational programs and on legislative and judicial law reform projects in collaboration with attorneys and policymakers. KLC Fellows for 2009-10 are David Sherbo-Huggins and Rebekah Murphy. The Campbell Fellows are Kristin Ware, Sara Kearsley, and Alyssa Knudsen.

OCAP regularly sponsors conferences for attorneys and other professionals on topics important for advocates for children. The next conference will be in April 2010 and will focus on ethical dilemmas for attorneys representing children. Audio files and powerpoints from the 2006, 2007, and 2008 CAP conferences are available here.

In 2008-09, the Project published research memoranda on Guardians ad Litem for Parents in Dependency and TPR Cases and Termination of Parental Rights in Extreme Conduct Cases. These documents, along with earlier memos are available on the Advocacy Projects page. Permission to reprint these documents is granted, so long as no fee is charged and the source is acknowledged. Attorneys who would like to propose research projects should contact the director.

The Oregon Child Advocacy Project is made possible by a generous founding gift from Duncan Campbell, a 1973 UO Law graduate and one of Oregon's most active children's advocates. The Knowledge Learning Corporation also supports the Project by sponsoring two Fellows.

For more information about the work of the Child Advocacy Project, contact us.

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