Children We Represent

At Justice for Kids^®, we are the only personal injury law firm expanding nationally that limits its practice to representing children and youth who have been re-abused and injured by the foster care, child protection and disability systems.

Foster care systems throughout the United States are re-abusing children and injuring the ones they were supposed to protect.

There are 29 states with child welfare systems with pending class actions or consent decrees because of systemic deprivations of children’s most basic rights –the right to be safe from harm in these child protection systems. PDF (Casey Family Programs, Class Action Summaries (2025 Update) (last visited July 14, 2025). New York, California, Illinois, and Florida –to name just a few states all face these class actions and systemic failures exposing children in these states to an epidemic of sexual abuse, physical abuse and emotional abuse. Even in states that have not been sued in class actions, foster care abuse is pervasive and systemic; it is not a collection of isolated cases; rather, it is a mass tort where children that have been previously exposed to neglect or abuse by their natural parents are then re-abused, retraumatized and exposed to permanent injury and harm by the state and local systems and private providers in the foster homes, group homes and residential treatment facilities that were supposed to protect them. Similar accounts of sexual and physical abuse during state custody have been reported by thousands of survivors nationwide; these accounts frequently involve the same agencies, placement systems, and oversight shortcomings. The consequences are staggering. These are not isolated failures-they reflect a systemic disregard for children’s welfare across multiple states.

There Is an Epidemic of Sexual Abuse and Child Sex Trafficking in the U.S. Foster Care System

At Justice for Kids®, we are foster care abuse lawyers, who are also child sex abuse lawyers who have handled class actions and personal injury damage cases in foster care. Sexual abuse, physical abuse and trafficking of children while in foster care is not rare—it’s widespread, devastating, and far too often ignored. Studies show foster youth are significantly more likely to be sexually victimized than children in the general population. In some states, nearly half of foster girls report sexual abuse before or during placement. The Federal Government requires states to keep data concerning re-abuse in foster care, but that data is under-reported.

Group homes and poorly supervised foster homes are frequent sites of repeated sexual abuse and human trafficking. The foster care system was built to protect vulnerable children. But when abuse happens within it, and no one listens, that system becomes part of the harm, and children become human guinea pigs by systems that were supposed to protect them.

Nationwide, Many Foster Youth Run Away, Become Homeless, and Are Victimized and Sexually Trafficked

Every year, thousands of children go missing from foster care—many fleeing unsafe or unstable placements. Sexual abuse in foster care is epidemic. Once on the streets, foster children face a high risk of homelessness, exploitation, and trafficking. A 2022 federal report found over 20,000 foster youth were reported missing, and it was noted that 1 in 5 endangered runaways were likely sex trafficking victims—most of whom were in state care. This isn’t just a runaway problem—it’s a systemic failure. Overburdened case workers, poor oversight, and broken placement systems leave vulnerable children exposed to trauma and even greater harm.

Justice for Kids® attorneys have decades of experience fighting for the rights of foster children, at-risk minors, and medically fragile children who have been physically, sexually, and emotionally abused or injured or suffered wrongful death in all types of settings, including family residences, foster homes, group homes, emergency shelters, and residential treatment centers.

Our multi-state law firm was founded to represent children who have been harmed by the system pursue damage awards, wrongful death claims and other legal causes of action for victims of personal injury. Our attorneys are known nationally for achieving multimillion-dollar awards, verdicts and settlements and delivering precedent-setting rulings.

At Justice for Kids®, our pursuit of justice for foster children, those injured or abused by state agencies and their contracted care providers, or in institutional settings or facilities is driven by a mission: to help these children seek the results they need to carry on with their lives.

***Most cases result in a lower recovery. Results may not be typical and reflect awards before deduction for attorneys’ fees and expenses. It should not be assumed that your case will have as beneficial a result.

The following are examples of cases Justice for Kids® attorneys have handled. However, if a foster child is seriously injured and you do not see the precise description that fits your factual circumstances, please do not hesitate to call us to discuss the case.  We know child protection and disability systems.

• Child Adoption–Negligent Adoption
• Child Abuse Lawyer
• Child and Day Care Injuries & Deaths
• Child and Human Trafficking
• Child Catastrophic Injuries
• Child Death Cases
• Child Sexual Abuse Lawyer
• Child Welfare Injury Claims
• Children Injured and Abused by Adoptive Parents
• Children Injured at Home by their own Parents
• Children Injured by Drug or Alcohol-Addicted Parents
• Children’s Civil Rights Lawyer
• Civil Rights Violations 42 USC § 1983 Claims on Behalf of Children
• Class Actions to Protect Children
• DCF Negligence and Claims Bills
• Disabled Children’s Injuries
• Drownings and Near Drownings
• Drug Abuse Facilities and Addiction Treatment
• Estate Planning, Guardianship and Trust Planning for Disabled Children
• Foster Care Abuse Lawyer
• Medical, Psychological and Professional Malpractice Cases
• Mental Health and Drug Injuries
• Negligent Abuse Investigations
• Physically Abused Children
• Psychotropic Drug Abuse
• School, Hazing and Bullying Injuries to Children
• Sexual Abuse in Foster Care
• Sexual Abuse – Child-on-Child Sexual Abuse
• Sexual Abuse – Foster Parents and Caretakers of Children
• Sexual Abuse – Schools, Shelters, Religious Organizations, and Civic Organizations
• Therapist Negligence