May 15, 2027 will mark the 60th anniversary of the landmark U.S. Supreme Court decision, In re Gault, which affirmed the right to counsel for all youth in delinquency court. Over the past 60 years, the youth defense community has worked persistently to uphold and strengthen youth rights in juvenile court. This page is dedicated to celebrate the youth defense community and highlight our collective work.
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Updated Pocket Gault for the 60th Anniversary of In re Gault!
As we celebrate the 60th Anniversary of the landmark U.S. Supreme Court decision of In re Gault, we are excited to share that we have updated our Pocket Gault 2.0 which includes The Gault Center name with our intentional shift to drop the “J” and not refer to young people as “juveniles.” This pocket edition…
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Michigan Passes Legislation Establishing a Statewide Youth Defense System
On July 24, 2026, the Governor of Michigan signed into law landmark legislation to ensure that all youth in the state have access to qualified youth defense counsel. This law gives the Michigan Indigent Defense Commission the authority to establish a statewide youth defense system, which will include youth defense standards, oversight, quality improvement, and support…
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More Than a Name: The Gault Center and the Future of Youth Defense
The Gault Center’s Executive Director Mary Ann Scali joined Executive Director John A. Tuell from the National Resource Center for the Transformation of Youth Justice in their podcast, “Youth Justice Transformation in Action.” Mary Ann shared the Gault Center’s vision for the 60th Anniversary of the In re Gault decision, what it means to be…
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The Role of Youth Defenders in Abolition
HyeJi Kim, at the Gault Center, wrote an essay on the critical role of youth defenders in building toward an interdependent future, where all children and youth are free to thrive. This essay is an ode to the youth defense community and offers a widened lens of how our work can fit into a broader…
Gault@60 Calls to Action
National Community Asset Map
As we look ahead to the 60th anniversary of the Gault decision, the Gault Center is committed to supporting the youth defense community to build bridges to communities, offering young people pathways to grow and thrive in communities of care. To that end, the Gault Center has developed a National Community Asset Map of community organizations that embrace youth involved in the delinquency system. This map is crowdsourced by youth defense advocates across the country and offers a living directory of community-based alternatives to incarceration and surveillance. If you would like to submit an organization to our National Community Asset Map, please contact us.
Youth Defense Trojan Mice Experiments
Youth defense advocates are challenging the status quo and creating new pathways to mitigate the harms of punishment and surveillance that arise in delinquency courts every day. “Trojan Mice Experiments” are small, light, nimble experiments to test what works and what doesn't to inform a collective strategy. As we approach the 60th anniversary of the Gault decision, please share your Youth Defense Trojan Mice Experiments with us here so that we can continue to grow as a collective to expand the realm of possibilities to strengthen youth rights.
Please Share Your Gault@60 Celebrations With Us!
We’d love to highlight your Gault@60 celebrations. Please share your celebrations and photos with us here, and we’d love to add them to this page!
Need inspiration? Here are some ideas to celebrate Gault@60.
- State or local proclamations on the importance of the right to counsel for youth
- Local bar association resolutions and programs
- Op-eds in state and local papers
- Law review articles highlighting the anniversary
- Trainings, brownbags, and conferences on the right to counsel for youth
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Distribution of our updated Pocket Gaults (If you can cover printing and shipping costs, we would be happy to send you our updated Pocket Gaults. Contact us for more information.)
- Local gatherings, activities, trivia, and parties to celebrate youth defense advocates
