By Margarett Alexander, Alexander Law Office

For over twenty years, I have served as a Guardian ad Litem (GAL) and court-appointed counsel, primarily in Barren and Metcalfe counties. I stand in courtrooms on behalf of hundreds of children who did not choose to be there and who needed someone whose only job was to speak for their best interests.

I became a GAL because I have spent my adult life working with children. These kids are our future, and there is nothing more rewarding than helping a child move through trauma toward a stable adulthood. But those of us who work in this system know something that doesn’t show up in case statistics: the structure meant to support this work is quietly pushing attorneys away from it, especially in rural Kentucky.

Statewide, a GAL in Kentucky is generally paid a maximum of $500 per family, not per child, regardless of how long the case takes. In private practice, $500 covers roughly two to three hours of an attorney’s time. Multiple children per case is the norm; most of my cases involve siblings, often with different combinations of parents and placements in multiple locations, so $500 is stretched across several children from the start.

On the extreme end, I currently have a case involving seven high-needs children, originally placed across five different foster homes and moved frequently, including into residential placements. This case has been open for seven years and is still not fully resolved, all compensated at $500 total.

The effect is measurable. Barren and Metcalfe counties currently have only five attorneys serving on the dependency, neglect, and abuse (DNA) panel. Rural areas already have fewer attorneys as lawyers retire or move on, and there aren’t enough for well-paid work, let alone work paying cents on the dollar.

That shortage lands hardest in rural jurisdictions. When no GAL or Court-Appointed Counsel is available, cases may get continued and children could wait longer for permanency. This is especially true in Emergency Custody Order cases, which require an attorney on short notice. When experienced attorneys decline, representation quality itself becomes an issue, and one attorney declining, retiring, or reaching a conflict can slow the system for every child who follows.

Pay is only part of why attorneys leave this work. These cases carry a real emotional toll. You sit with children who have been abused or neglected, read details no one should have to read, and carry a caseload of trauma home with you. Some cases end in reunification and real hope. Others do not resolve the way you wanted for a child you have come to care about, and that stays with you. This work takes genuine passion and a strong stomach for grief alongside legal skill, and it should never be forced on an attorney who has no choice but to serve, or on an attorney who is just buying time until retirement.

There is also work outside the appointment itself: answering the questions of relative caregivers, who step in to care for a child with no attorney of their own. I make time for them because someone has to, but it is uncompensated time layered on top of an already underpaid, emotionally demanding role.

It is impossible to spend as much time with each child as I would like. What I try to do without exception is make time to speak with any child who asks, and to stay in contact with caseworkers, therapists, and physicians on their behalf.  Often, with teens, that relationship continues long past the time their case is closed. 

Not every case requires years of involvement, and $500 may be adequate for some. But a flat, per-family fee that ignores the number of children, the miles driven, the hours spent, and the years a case can span discourages attorneys from taking these cases.  

If Kentucky wants attorneys, especially in rural counties, to keep doing this work, compensation must reflect its scope: fees per child rather than per family, reimbursement for rural travel, and added pay for cases extending well beyond a typical timeline. 

Those of us who see this daily can carry these asks to legislators, judges, and court administrators. Every child placed in this position deserves someone whose only job is to look out for them, and right now, in too many rural counties, we ask a shrinking handful of attorneys to carry that weight for less than a two-hour consultation costs anywhere else. Our children pay for it.

To learn more about this topic, you can:

  • Read KYA’s blog on progress made toward high-quality legal representation during the 2026 legislative session.
  • Read KYA’s blog on the basics of child welfare legal representation in Kentucky.