Report of the Working Group on Determining the Child's Capacity to Make Decisions

[Preamble] As with adults, a lawyer has an ethical obligation to advocate the position of a child unless independent evidence exists that the child is unable to express a reasoned choice about issues that are relevant to the particular purpose for which the lawyer is representing the child. Where such evidence exists, the lawyer must engage in additional fact-finding to determine whether the child has, or may develop, the capacity to direct the lawyer's action in the particular context.