Can Parents Represent Their Children in Court Without a Lawyer? A Florida Case Heads to the U.S. Supreme Court

Blake Warner v. Hillsborough County School Board

Download HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY SCHOOL BOARD • 161KB

Date: February 7, 2025

A legal battle out of Florida is raising some important questions about parental rights and the preservation of educational opportunity.  At the heart of the case: Can a parent represent their child in court without hiring a lawyer?  That’s what Blake Warner, a Florida father, tried to do. But federal courts said no—citing a rule known as the “Counsel Mandate,” which basically says that minors must be represented by a licensed attorney in federal court. The problem? That often means families without the resources to hire a lawyer are shut out entirely.

Earlier this year, Warner took his case to the United States Supreme Court, and the Florida Legal Foundation joined seven other advocacy groups from around the United States with an amicus curiae (“friend of the court”) brief to back his position.

Why This Case Matters

The Florida Legal Foundation argues that federal courts are misreading both federal and Florida law, and—maybe even more importantly—ignoring centuries of common law in refusing to allow parents to represent their children in court.  Florida, like many states, does allow parents to represent their minor children in court under certain conditions. According to Florida Rule of Civil Procedure 1.210(b), a parent can act as a “next friend” or legal guardian and file suit on behalf of a child.  In other words, Florida law is clear: parents can go to court for their kids—even if they’re not lawyers. What parent wouldn’t do this for their child in a federal trial court if permitted?

The Federal Courts: A Legal Dead End

The federal courts, however, have drawn a hard line. They say that unless you’re a licensed attorney, you can’t represent someone else—even your child. Critics argue that this creates a “Hobson’s choice”: either come up with the money for a lawyer, or abandon your legal rights altogether. The courts claim this is necessary to protect children from unskilled representation—but Florida Legal Foundation says that’s missing the point.

What the Common Law Says

The Foundation’s brief digs deeply into common law tradition, reaching all the way back to the 1700s. Under English common law—still influential in U.S. courts—parents or guardians could always represent minors as their “next friend.” And Florida explicitly incorporates this tradition into its state law.

So why do federal courts treat it differently?  One theory is that they’ve confused this issue with the rule that corporations must be represented by lawyers. But children aren’t corporations—they’re real human beings. And at common law, real people (including minors) could be represented in court by real people—like their parents.

The Bigger Picture: Parental Rights at Risk

This isn’t just a technical legal debate. It’s about fundamental parental rights and more particularly here, educational opportunity.  Florida law and the state constitution recognize that parents have the right to direct their children’s upbringing—including in legal matters. The state even passed a law in 2021 stating that these rights are “fundamental” and should only be limited when absolutely necessary.  In many families, the inability to afford legal counsel effectively denies children their day in court. The Counsel Mandate might be well-intentioned, but Florida Legal Foundation believes it risks doing more harm than good by shutting the courtroom doors to families who can’t afford representation.

What Happened

In the term just ended, the United States Supreme Court declined to take the case.  As those who watch the Court well know, they are very chary about their choice of cases, in recent years less than one hundred per year from all over the United States.  However, in the immortal words of Winston Churchill, the Florida Legal Foundation “never gives up, never gives up, never gives up.” The question presented has nationwide implications—giving more parents the legal power to advocate for their children, especially in education and other types of family law matters.

Stay tuned.

Read the brief filed by Florida Legal Foundation in support of the petitioner attached above.