Welcome to the BraamKids website! This site is designed to provide information to foster youth, foster parents, social workers, child advocates, and anyone interested in learning about the plan for reforming the foster care system in Washington State, including how you can get involved. This site is provided courtesy of the Plaintiffs in Braam v. State of Washington, a lawsuit about the conditions in foster care.
WHAT IS BRAAM?
Braam vs. State of Washington was originally filed in 1998 and settled in July of 2004. As part of the settlement agreement, the State agreed to make reforms in six key areas:
Placement Stability
Mental Health
Foster Parent Training and Information
Unsafe/Inappropriate Placements
Sibling Separation; and
Adolescent Services
The Braam Oversight Panel was created to come up with a clear and specific implementation plan for the State to follow. To learn more, select Background Information in the sidebar on the left.
WHAT IS CURRENTLY GOING ON WITH BRAAM?
NOTICE TO CLASS MEMBERS OF REVISED SETTLEMENT AGREEMENT IN BRAAM V. STATE
The State of Washington, Department of Social and Health Services, along with the attorneys for the Braam Plaintiff class, have entered into a Revised Settlement and Exit Agreement (Revised Agreement) in the Braam lawsuit. The Revised Agreement has been preliminarily approved by the Court. The Revised Agreement:
- Is intended to replace the 2004 original settlement agreement, which expired on July 31, 2011.
- Acknowledges that although the State made significant progress and improvements to Washington’s child welfare system since 2004, it has not yet met a number of key outcomes.
- Will be in effect for 26 months, starting November 1, 2011, and ending December 31, 2013. The Revised Agreement states that the case of Braam v. State of Washington, No. 98-2-01570-1, shall be dismissed with prejudice on March 31, 2014, unless prior to that date (1) the parties have entered into a signed agreement to extend and/or modify the Revised Agreement; (2) the Court has already terminated the Revised Agreement because the State sought a court order asking for termination of the Revised Agreement because it met the full compliance measure for each and every outcome, as outlined in the Revised Agreement; or (3) Plaintiffs have commenced judicial enforcement proceedings.
- Reduces the number of outcomes with which the State must comply from 33 to 21, some outcomes have been redefined or replaced, and the method for measuring compliance with some outcomes has been altered.
- Requires the State to meet or exceed the “full compliance measure” for a specific outcome for 18 consecutive months before that outcome will no longer be monitored or enforceable by the Plaintiffs.
- Keeps the Braam Oversight Panel created by the 2004 settlement agreement in operation from November 1, 2011, to December 31, 2012. The Panel will remain staffed as necessary to monitor the State’s performance and compliance with the specified outcomes.
- Requires the State to pay Plaintiffs’ counsel attorneys fees while this proposed Revised Agreement remains in effect.
Class members are defined as “all children in the custody of DSHS who are now placed or in the future will be placed by DSHS in three or more placements and those in three or more placements and those children in the custody of DSHS who are at risk of three or more placements.”
Class members can review the full Revised Settlement and Exit Agreement here.
IF YOU ARE A CLASS MEMBER AND YOU DISAGREE WITH THE PROPOSED REVISED SETTLEMENT you may send your written objections to the Clerk of the Court at:
Clerk of the Court Whatcom County Superior Court 311 Grand Avenue, Suite 301 Bellingham, Washington 98225
Your written objections must be received by the Clerk of the Court no later than January 16, 2012. The objections must include the following:
1. The case name and cause number; Braam v. State of Washington, Whatcom County Case # 98-2-01570-1; 2. What you are objecting to in the settlement agreement; 3. An explanation of why you are objecting; 4. Your full name and address.
You can also appear at a hearing on January 25, 2012, at 8:30am to tell the judge that you disagree with the proposed Revised Settlement. This hearing will be held at the Whatcom County Courthouse, 311 Grand Avenue, Bellingham, WA 98225.
If at this hearing the Judge finds that the proposed Revised Settlement is fair, reasonable and an adequate resolution for this case, the Revised Agreement will become final.
IF YOU ARE A CLASS MEMBER AND YOU HAVE QUESTIONS ABOUT THE PROPOSED REVISED SETTLEMENT AND EXIT AGREEMENT you may contact Plaintiffs’ counsel—their contact information is below.
Do not contact the Court.
Casey Trupin Bill Grimm Columbia Legal Services National Center for Youth Law 101 Yesler Way, Ste. 300 405-14th Street, 15th Floor Seattle, WA 98104 Oakland, CA 94612-2701 (800) 542-0794, ext. 239 (510) 835-8098 casey.trupin@columbialegal.orgbillgrimm@youthlaw.org
Erin Shea McCann Timothy C. Farris Columbia Legal Services 300 North Commercial Street 101 Yesler Way, Ste. 300 PO Box 5008 Seattle, WA 98104 Bellingham, WA 98225-4002 (800) 542-0794, ext. 235 (360) 220-0800 erin.sheamccann@columbialegal.orgtfarris@kidcounsel.org
Braam Settlement Agreement Extended for 26 Months to Ensure Improved Services for Children and Youth In Foster Care
On October 31, 2011, Whatcom County Superior Court Judge Charles Snyder preliminarily approved a Revised Settlement and Exit Agreement in the case of Braam v. State of Washington. The Revised Agreement, which was reached after months of negotiations between the children's attorneys and DSHS, will extend the Braam Settlement for 26 months, with an end date of December 31, 2013.
The Revised Agreement acknowledges that "in a number of areas, significant progress and improvements to Washington's child welfare system have been made since (the original Settlement was reached in) 2004." The Revised Agreement also acknowledges "that the Department has not yet met a number of key outcomes" that were established by the original Settlement and incorporated into the Implementation Plan.
The Braam Oversight Panel, which was created by the original Settlement Agreement, will continue to operate and monitor the Department's progress on 21 outcome measures through 2012. The Panel will continue to issue semi-annual monitoring reports for the following data periods: July 1, 2011 - December 31, 2011; January 1, 2012 - June 30, 2012; and July 1, 2012 - December 31, 2012. Beginning in 2013, the Panel will no longer be responsible for monitoring the Department's compliance or issue monitoring reports, but it will be available for consultation and technical assistance to the Department.
The Revised Settlement and Exit Agreement filed with the court is available on the Braam Panel's here.
Welcome to the BraamKids website! This site is designed to provide information to foster youth, foster parents, social workers, child advocates, and anyone interested in learning about the plan for reforming the foster care system in Washington State, including how you can get involved. This site is provided courtesy of the Plaintiffs in Braam v. State of Washington, a lawsuit about the conditions in foster care.
The Braam Oversight Panel was created to come up with a clear and specific implementation plan for the State to follow. To learn more, select Background Information in the sidebar on the left. 