Child abuse is defined in many states as ‘any type of cruelty that is inflicted on a child including mental abuse, neglect, sexual abuse, physical harm, or exploitation.’ In any child abuse case, you need a child abuse attorney with the experience and expertise in your area of need in order to safeguard your legal rights.

Child abuse is a serious offense and not a charge one would want to try and fight alone and without proper representation. It is a crime for an adult to abuse a child who is entrusted to their care. This includes foster parents, parents, other adults who live in the home, legal guardians, baby sitters, and other family members. A person may be guilty of child abuse even if he/she did not commit the abuse themselves but merely were legally accountable for the child but failed to protect the child from abuse.

Before you agree to any attorney representation make sure you ask the right questions.

• What is their area of expertise? If it is not child abuse, then seek representation elsewhere. A divorce lawyer will not help you win a case involving child abuse.
• How many child abuse cases have you handled and what were the outcomes? If a lawyer isn’t willing to divulge his win/loss case ratio you may want to look elsewhere.
• What will the outcome of my case be? Any good lawyer will not tell you only what you want to hear. They will give you the straight facts regardless if it is good news or bad.
• How much courtroom experience do you have?

All the above are important questions to ask any child abuse attorney you are seeking representation from. Since it is your future on the line, don’t be afraid to ask difficult questions.