Office of the Child Advocate

State of Delaware – Office of the Child Advocate (OCA) is a non-judicial state agency charged with safeguarding the welfare of Delaware’s children. OCA was created in 1999 in response to numerous child deaths in Delaware resulting from child abuse. These cases pointed to deficiencies in the child protection system that could only be remedied through the collaborative efforts of Delaware’s many child welfare agencies. The General Assembly determined that an office to oversee these efforts, staff the Child Protection Accountability Commission (CPAC), and provide legal representation on behalf of Delaware’s dependent, neglected, and abused children was necessary. Pursuant to 29 Del. C. § 9005A, OCA is mandated to coordinate a program of legal representation for children, including the Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA) Program; to periodically review all relevant child welfare policies and procedures with a view toward improving the lives of children; recommend changes in procedures for investigating and overseeing the welfare of children; to assist the Office of the Investigation Coordinator in accomplishing its goals; to assist CPAC in investigating and reviewing deaths and near deaths of abused and neglected children; to develop and provide training to child welfare system professionals; and to staff CPAC.

While OCA has many statutory duties, legal representation of children is a significant part of OCA’s mission. OCA accomplishes its charge to represent children through the employment of four full-time Deputy Child Advocates (DCAs), contract Child Attorneys, a substantial and dedicated pool of volunteer Child Attorneys supervised by a Managing Attorney, and a robust and committed pool of community volunteers that serve as Court Appointed Special Advocates and are supervised by CASA Coordinators. The CASA Program moved from Family Court to OCA on March 6, 2017.

OCA Website