I wouldn't have become a juvenile lawyer if not for my past. You see, I grew up in an abusive and neglectful home. It's kind of hard to talk about, but its important for me to express myself and explain why I have such a passion for advocating the rights of youth. You see, my mother was an alcoholic, and mentally ill as well. My father, for his part, would beat me whenever mom wasn't around, which was often. I was often taken away from my parents, bounced around the system for a while, and then given back, only to be taken away again. And on and on it went, over and over until I was 18. That is when I decided that I would make my career as a juvenile lawyer and advocate for youths who the system doesn't allow to speak for themselves.

As a juvenile attorney, I work at a youth law center financed in large part by the federal government. Each juvenile lawyer who works here is assigned to several individual kids. The parents are adults. They understand the system, and they have lawyers to advocate on their behalf, but many time the kids don't.

A juvenile lawyer helps even the playing field, because he is the only person whose sole duty is to look out for the welfare of the child and make sure that they system is not abusing their rights. I enjoy my job as a juvenile lawyer, but know that I alone can not do enough. The system is deeply flawed, and in many cases, there is no one to help kids who are in the middle of legal custody disputes, or are the victims of abusive homes. 

These are not the only issues tackled by juvenile lawyers, however. Many juvenile attorneys work in other areas of the law. For example, one type of juvenile lawyer specializes in defending minors accused of crimes. Because of how the juvenile justice system is set up, if a minor is tried for a crime, there are all types of other factors which must be considered, which aren't involved among adult trials.  

For example, the penalties are all different, and there is a chance that, instead of being sent to juvenile hall, a minor can enroll in a behavior treatment program which will help to teach him to stay out of crime like doing other activities like involving in sports and be fond to home and garden activities. For many juvenile offenders, this is the best option, and a juvenile lawyer can help steer his clients into these types of programs.