Art. 1019.1 Notice to counsel

When a petition is filed in a case covered by this rule, the court has to notify the lawyers who will represent the child and the parents. If the parents can't afford a lawyer, the court must send a copy of the petition to the office that provides free legal help to parents. The court also has to send a copy to whatever agency provides a lawyer for the child.

This makes sure both the child and the parents get legal representation right from the start of the case. Nobody has to ask for a lawyer or track one down on their own. The court takes care of this step automatically as soon as the petition is filed, so both sides have legal help in place early in the process.