Judicial Conferences

The Children’s Commission provides high-quality trainings and conferences that promote best practices to improve outcomes for children, youth and families; establish and maintain a well-informed judiciary; and encourage judicial leadership both within the courtroom and in the broader child welfare and juvenile justice communities. Please see below for recent and upcoming judicial conferences hosted by the Children’s Commission. For questions regarding these judicial conferences, please email CCTraining@txcourts.gov.

The 19th Annual Child Welfare Judges Conference will be held on October 26-28, 2026 in Georgetown, Texas. This 3-day statewide conference is hosted by the Children’s Commission in partnership with the Texas Center for the Judiciary. Designed for judges who devote a minimum of 15% of their docket to hearing civil child welfare cases, this conference attracts judges from across the state who handle child welfare cases, including district, county court-at-law, and associate judges; Child Protection Court judges; and appellate judges.

The curriculum typically provides approximately 15 hours of Continuing Judicial Education, a minimum of 4 hours of Family Violence Credits, and ethics hours. Speakers include members of the judiciary, OCA leadership, DFPS leadership, SSCC leadership, and persons with lived experience in the child welfare system.

Registration for the conference will open in summer 2026 through the Texas Center for the Judiciary.

2025 Child Welfare Judges Conference

The Children’s Commission, in partnership with the Texas Center for the Judiciary (TCJ) hosted the 18th annual Child Welfare Judges Conference (CWJC) on October 27-29, 2025.

The full conference curriculum provided 16.25 Continuing Judicial Education hours, 1.75 ethics hours, and 8 Family Violence credit hours. Presentations included a Keynote Address from Brian Meyer, PhD, LLC, entitled “Increasing Civility in Your Courtroom: How to Make Your Courtroom Safer.” The opening day of the conference featured a Best Practices Series which covered all of the hearings in a child welfare case, from Court Ordered Services through Permanency Hearing After Final Order and Extended Jurisdiction. Additional presentations which followed were titled: 89th Legislative Session Update; OCA Update; Contempt Authority; Promoting Positive Permanency through Kinship Caregivers; Current and Practical Issues at the Intersection of Child Welfare and Education; Addressing Placement Capacity Issues; Addressing Service Array Issues; DFPS Implementation of 89th Legislative Session Changes; Applying Lessons from the Family Treatment Court Model to Address Recovery in Child Welfare Cases; Supporting Parents through Family Violence, Housing, and Employment Challenges; and Recognizing Judicial Leadership and Innovation.

Speakers included members of the judiciary, DFPS leadership, OCA leadership, SSCC leadership, and kinship caregivers and parents with lived experience in the child welfare system. Additionally, Regional Breakouts were convened with DFPS and Single Source Continuum Contractors (SSCC) staff, including RDIs, CPS RDs, RSIs, and SSCC representatives from regions in Community-Based Care.

Child Protection Courts, also known as CPCs, were created to specialize in managing child abuse and neglect dockets. Like the child support court associate judges, these associate judges are appointed by their regional presiding judges and are OCA employees. CPC judges hear child welfare cases exclusively. The goal for CPC dockets is to help children and families achieve safety, permanency, and well-being in a timely manner. The Children’s Commission provides funding for the Child Protection Court Management System (CPCMS), as well as training and other support for CPC judges and court coordinators to conduct hearings and manage cases. There are currently 30 CPCs whose jurisdiction covers more than half of all counties state.

The Child Protection Court Convening is held in partnership with the Office of Court Administration and will train both the CPC judges and court coordinators. The upcoming Child Protection Court Convening will be in person on July 15-17, 2026 in Round Rock, Texas. For more information, to register, or for questions please email CCTraining@txcourrs.gov.

The 2025 Child Protection Court Convening was held virtually on July 18, 2025 and included five plenary presentations for the judges and court coordinators, as well as two breakout sessions for each audience, one of which was a moderated discussion of current issues. Panel presentations included legislative updates, data and reporting requirements, best practices for courtroom management, and issues specific to rural jurisdictions. The curriculum provided Continuing Judicial Education, TBLS, and ethics hours as well as Continuing Educational Credit hours for court coordinators. Speakers included members of the judiciary, TIDC staff, and OCA staff.

Registration is now open for the inaugural Judicial Conference on Juvenile Justice (JCJJ)! This first-of-its-kind conference is designed exclusively for Texas judges who preside over juvenile justice cases. JCJJ will take place in Round Rock, Texas on August 17-18, 2026.

Attendees will hear from judicial leaders, an individual with lived experience, and leading experts as they explore key legal requirements, reveal emerging data trends, and share innovative approaches shaping the field. Sessions will be tailored to focus on judicial practice and will include the following topics: juvenile crime trends, determinate sentence and certification cases, specialty courts for juveniles, risk-need-responsivity, sex offenses, engaging parents/guardians, juvenile boards, an update from leadership at the Texas Juvenile Justice Department (TJJD), and a moderated judicial discussion. The curriculum will provide 11 hours of training total, and MCLE and TBLS credit will be requested.

For more information, to register, or for questions please email CCJuvenile@txcourts.gov.