The mission of the Kinship Care Solutions Project is to ensure that children have their safety and other needs met when their parents are unable to care for them through minor guardianship with caring relatives and other caregivers.
Who We Serve
- King County residents or cases that can be filed in King County Superior Court
- Low-income individuals
- Relatives or other caregivers with a significant relationship to the child/children
What We Do
- Provide free legal advice and representation for relatives and other caregivers seeking minor guardianship of a child/ren through a panel of volunteer attorneys
Factors we consider include:
- Length of time (if any) that the child has resided with the caregiver
- If the caregiver is a safe and stable placement for the child
- If the child would be at risk if returned to his/her parents
- The difficulty of finding a volunteer attorney for the case
- If the caregiver would have trouble bringing the case without an attorney
We Do Not
- Help parents of the child involved in the guardianship
- Help in dependency cases (where children are in foster care) unless parents agree to the guardianship
- Help with adoption cases
- Help with adult guardianships
How To Reach Services
- To apply for services please complete the intake form here:
Kinship Care Online Intake Form
- Then email your completed intake form to KinshipCare@kcba.org
- If you do not have internet or computer access you may call 206-267-7086 to leave a message. Please expect a call back in 5-7 days.
- Please note this intake line is for relative caretakers who are seeking guardianship of minor children.
- If your case is placed with a volunteer attorney, you and your attorney will make arrangements for appointments.
How To Prepare
- Have the parents’ names, addresses, and birthdates.
- Have the child or children’s name and birthdate and place of residence for the last 6 months.
- Have the name and date of birth of all adults living in the household.
- Gather all related paperwork, including past custody orders, protection orders, and CPS or criminal records involving the parents, and any records concerning the child or children.
- Tell why the child is or should be under your care and why the parents are unable to care for the child and why it would be detrimental for the child to be with his or her parents .
- Identify any special needs of the child.
- Identify any court proceeding and deadlines, including a case number.