Credit: Google

Cross-examination

Working toward racial equity in the child welfare system

Amy Vasquez, a solo practitioner in Burlington, has represented children and parents in child welfare matters for nearly 25 years. She is chair of the New Jersey State Bar Association (NJSBA) Child Welfare Law Section and co-chair of the Pro Bono Committee. She also serves on the NJSBA Board of Trustees. Vasquez was a recipient of the inaugural Haywood Burns Fellowship for Civil Rights from City University of New York School of Law Public Interest Law Association. While in law school, she worked at the Innocence Project in New York, where she located and preserved physical evidence. Her efforts helped exonerate and free three clients after decades of imprisonment. Vasquez continues to offer her assistance on a pro bono basis to the Innocence Project. Prior to law school, Vasquez was a substitute teacher in special education at a New York City public elementary school.

The Bar Report asked Vasquez for an update on her NJSBA activities. This interview was lightly edited for space and clarity. What issues are the Child Welfare Law Section working on?

Child welfare proceedings are closed to the public and documents relating to these cases are confidential. As chair of the NJSBA Child Welfare Law Section, I strive to bring awareness of many issues in this area of law to the larger legal community.