Faculty Profile: F Scott McCown
Main Profile Content
Biography
F. Scott McCown rejoined the faculty in 2013.
From 1989 to 2002, he was a state district court judge of general jurisdiction, hearing a broad range of civil cases, including many public interest cases such as the state’s public school finance litigation. By special assignment, Judge McCown also presided over a child protection docket. In 1999, Judge McCown’s Petition in Behalf of the Forsaken Children of Texas to the Governor and 76th Legislature resulted in significantly increased state appropriations for Child Protective Services. He was recognized for this work with the 1999 Award for Leadership in Public Child Welfare by the National Association of Public Child Welfare Administrators, an affiliate of the American Public Human Services Association, and the 2000 Leadership in Local Government Child Advocacy Award by the National Association of Child Advocates. He was also named the 2000 Texas CASA Judge of the Year.
After retiring as a state district judge, McCown served as executive director of the Center for Public Policy Priorities, a nonpartisan, nonprofit policy institute working to address the challenges of low-income Texas children and families. In 2011 and 2005, while he was the center’s executive director, Texas Monthly named him to its list of the 25 most powerful people in Texas politics, calling him a “voice for the voiceless.” In 2007, the School of Social Work at The University of Texas at Austin presented McCown with its Vision and Valor Award of Distinction for exemplary accomplishments in the promotion of social justice.
Before serving as a judge, McCown was a special assistant attorney general and chief of the Criminal Law Enforcement Division, an assistant professor of law at Texas Law, and an associate at Vinson & Elkins. McCown earned a B.S. cum laude (Psychology) in 1976 from Texas Christian University and a J.D. with Honors in 1979 from The University of Texas School of Law, where he was elected to the Order of the Coif, the Order of Barristers, and the Editorial Board of the Texas Law Review.
McCown is a member of the American Law Institute. The Austin Bar Association presented him with its 2013 Distinguished Lawyer Award. The Texas Law Review Association presented him with its 2017 Dean Leon Green Award in recognition of outstanding contributions to the legal profession. The Student Bar Association named him Clinical Professor of the Year for 2016-17.In 2022, Texas Law recognized McCown as a Distinguished Alumnus for Community Service.
Most Recent Media
Courses for Spring 2023
View Course HistoryProfessional Activities
2022
September 16, 2022
Invited Discussant
Texas Supreme Court Grievance Oversight Committee
Invited to discuss current issues in professional responsibility.
2020
February 14, 2020
Panelist on Legal Ethics Issues in the News
Mid-Year Meeting of the Association of Professional Responsibility Lawyers (APRL)
2019
January 18, 2019
Facilator, Normalcy for Children and Youth in Foster Care Roundtable
Hosted by Texas Supreme Court's Commission on Children, Youth & Families
2018
Fall 2018
Committee Member
Texas Supreme Court's Children's Commission, Legal Representation Committee
Participated in the review and development of the 2018 Study of Legal Representation in Child Protective Services Cases requested by the Texas Legislature.
June 21, 2018
Panelist on Privitization of CPS
State Bar of Texas Annual Meeting
April 20, 2018
CLE Presentation on Privatization of CPS
Child Protection Section of the State Bar of Texas
Continuing Legal Education Presentation
2017
November 15, 2017
Moderated Judicial Continuing Education Panel on Child Welfare Attorney Accountability
Texas Supreme Court Children's Commission, Annual Child Welfare Judge Conference
November 2, 2017
Guest Speaker on Child Protection in Texas
UT Oshner Lifelong Learning Institute
October 9, 2017
CLE on Professional Responsibility
American Association of Health and Human Services Attorneys
October 6, 2017
CPS: The Big Picture
Executive Committee, Texas Law Review Association
September 22, 2017
CLE Speaker for the 23rd Annual Bexar County Children's Court Ad Litem Seminar
Bexar County Children's Court
Legislative Update on SB 11: Understanding the Outsourcing of Case Management
February 14, 2017
Op Ed: Privatizing Child Protective Services would be bad for Texas
Dallas Morning News
February 13, 2017
Talk about Child Protective Services
Pastoral Leadership for Public Life, Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary
February 2, 2017
Invited Testimony Regarding Child Protective Services and SB 11
Texas Senate Health and Human Services Committee
January 23, 2017
CLE on Lawyers in CPS System
Family Justice Conference, Texas Center for the Judiciary
2016
December 14, 2016
Moderated Panel on Deconstructing Decision-making
Beyond the Bench: Law, Justice, and Communities Summit
Professor McCown moderated a panel on deconstructing decision-making at the Beyond the Bench: Law, Justice, and Communities Summit hosted by the Texas Supreme Court and the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals at Paul Quinn College in Dallas. The panel explored recognizing and combating implicit bias in the justice system.
December 6, 2016
Report of the Texas Commission to Expand Legal Services
Texas Supreme Court Commission
The 19-member Texas Commission to Expand Civil Legal Services, appointed by the Texas Supreme Court, has proposed seven recommendations to expand civil legal services for “modest-means” clients in Texas, including specific ways to direct those disqualified for free legal-aid help to organizations and lawyers willing to serve them. Professor McCown served on the commission.
November 16, 2016
Invited Testimony regarding Child Protective Services
Texas House County Affairs Committee
November 14, 2016
Facilitated Docketing Roundtable
CPS Judges and Coordinators Meeting
November 14, 2016
Presented on Domestic Violence and Child Safety
2016 Child Welfare Conference hosted by Texas Center for Judiciary
August 23, 2016
Speaker and Panelist: Effective Representation of Children and Aged-Out Foster Youth: Beyond the Basics
State Bar CLE
Sponsored by the Children's Commission
August 15, 2016
Into the Fold Podcast, Episode 27: Child Welfare in Texas
MH Daily, A Service of the Hogg Foundation for Mental Health
July 12, 2016
Invited Testimony on Interim Charges Related to CPS
Texas House Human Services Committee
May 20, 2016
Kids in Court Roundtable Discussion
Texas Supreme Court's Children's Commission
Served as facilitator.
April 12, 2016
Changes Need to be Made for CPS
Texas Perspectives - Op Ed
A widely published op ed that first appeared in the Dallas Morning News on the current problems at Child Protective Services and the need for action.
April 4, 2016
Child Protection Court Ad Litem Seminar
Child Protection Courts of South Texas, Hill Country, and South Central Texas
Moderated Foster Youth Panel and Presented on Ad Litem Representation.
March 3, 2016
Members Consultative Group
American Law Institute
Participated in discussion of Preliminary Draft No. 1 for Restatement - Children and the Law.
January 22, 2016
Domestic Violence Advocates and Child Advocates: How Can We Work Together?
Texas Chapter of the Association of Family and Conciliation Courts
Presentation
2015
November 30, 2015
Texas Supreme Court Commission to Expand Civil Legal Services
Appointed by Texas Supreme Court to serve on Commission to Expand Civil Legal Services. The commission is charged with developing proposals to meet the demand for affordable legal services.
November 30, 2015
Working Group on Enrolling Former Foster Youth in Medicaid
Texas Health and Human Services Commission
Served on working group to develop a presentation on enrolling former foster youth in Medicaid.
October 31, 2015
Meeting of the National Advisory Council
Hogg Foundation for Mental Health
The Hogg Foundation for Mental Health invited Professor McCown to serve on its National Advisory Council, which met November 4-6.
October 30, 2015
Participated in Negotiated Rulemaking
Department of Family and Protective Services
Invited to participate in negotiated rulemaking regarding notification of significant events in the Texas Family Code, §264.018(l), as amended by Section 48, SB 206, 84th Legislature, 2015.
September 22, 2015
“Hacking Through the Jungle of ICPC, UCCJEA, ICWA, and More”
Travis County CPS Model Court Continuing Legal Education
September 11, 2015
Presented Texas Civil Procedure Update
State Bar Advanced Civil Appellate Practice
August 18, 2015
Facilitated Discussion of the Judge's Role in Ensuring Child Well-Being
Child Welfare Conference hosted by Texas Center for the Judiciary
Moderated panel of foster youth and facilitated judicial discussion of judge's role in ensuring child well-being in foster care cases.
July 21, 2015
Moving from Ordinary to Extraordinary Representation in CPS Cases
State Bar CLE
Presented Continuing Legal Education Program sponsored by the State Bar of Texas and the Children's Commission to attorneys representing parties in CPS cases.
June 30, 2015
78th Annual Conference
National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges
Attended 78th Annual Conference of the National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges.
June 30, 2015
SB 1889 Implementation Stakeholder Workgroup
Department of Family and Protective Services
Provided comments on drafting regulations to implement Senate Bill 1889 relating to prohibiting findings of abuse and neglect against a parent who seeks mental or behavioral health services for a child from the department solely because the family is unable to obtain services elsewhere.
January 30, 2015
Legal Representation Workgroup
Texas Supreme Court Children's Commission
January 23, 2015
Facilatator, Child and Family Services Review Stakeholder Feedback Meeting
Texas Supreme Court Children's Commission
January 12, 2015
Member, HHSC Performance Review Strike Force
Appointed by Governor Abbott
January 8, 2015
Workshop on Reducing the Use of Psychotropic Medication in Foster Care
22nd Annual Children's Law Institute in New Mexico
2014
December 19, 2014
Facilatator, Child and Family Services Review Stakeholder Feedback Meeting
Texas Supreme Court Children's Commission
November 30, 2014
American Law Institute's Member's Consultative Group
Restatement on Children and the Law
November 14, 2014
Facilatator, Child and Family Services Review Stakeholder Feedback Meeting
Texas Supreme Court Children's Commission
November 13, 2014
Testimony about DFPS/HHSC Consolidation
Sunset Advisory Comission
November 13, 2014
Panelist on Hacking through the Jungle of ICPC, UCCJEA, ICWA, and Vienna Convention
Texas Department of Family & Protective Services Attorneys Conference
July 18, 2014
Advocates cite drownings in calls for help with CPS case loads
Houston Chronicle
Quoted regarding foster care.
June 25, 2014
Testimony on Proposed Sunset Staff Recommendations regarding Department of Family and Protective Services
Sunset Advisory Comission
June 3, 2014
Inivited Testimony about Child Deaths Due to Maltreatment
Federal Commission to Eliminate Child Abuse and Neglect Fatalities
May 30, 2014
Keynote Address on Foster Care Youth Success in College
Education Reach for Texans Conference
May 27, 2014
Comments on Proposed Sunset Staff Recommendations regarding Department of Family and Protective Services
Sunset Advisory Comission
April 23, 2014
Texas Civil Procedure Update
County and District Clerks Association, UT Law-CLE
March 7, 2014
HB 915 Implementation Workgroup
Texas Supreme Court Commission on Children, Youth & Families
Facilitated the final meeting of the HB 915 Implementation Workgroup regarding the use of psychotropic medication in foster care.
February 28, 2014
Legal Representation Workgroup
Texas Supreme Court's Commission on Children, Youth & Families
Participated as a member of the Legal Representation Workgroup to improve legal representation of children and parents in CPS cases.
February 21, 2014
Texas Senators Split on How to Address Sharp Rise in Foster Care Deaths
Dallas Morning News
Quoted in Dallas Morning News on child safety.
February 20, 2014
Testimony on Child Safety in Foster Care
Texas Senate Health and Human Services Committee
January 28, 2014
Child Protection Training
Texas Department of Family and Protective Services
Prepared a taped teaching module on preparing affidavits in child abuse cases.
2013
December 11, 2013
Permanency Options and the Role of the Court-Appointed Special Advocate
Texas CASA Webinar
October 28, 2013
The United States of Texas, Why the Lone Star State is America’s future
Time Magazine
Quoted by Time Magazine in cover story on Texas.
October 26, 2013
Texas Conquers America Predicts Time Magazine
Dallas Morning News
Quoted by Dallas Morning News in Steve Blow column on Texas.
September 1, 2013
Eluding Big Ethics Fines
San Antonio Express-News
Quoted by the San Antonio Express-News about the standard of review in administrative appeals in Texas.
August 29, 2013
Lawsuit charging that Texas provides shoddy care for foster children can advance, judge rules
Dallas Morning News
Quoted by the Dallas Morning News about a federal class action regarding the care provided to foster children.
August 18, 2013
Toddler’s death raises questions about how Texas contractor screens, trains foster parents
Dallas Morning News
Quoted by Dallas Morning News about how Texas screens and trains foster parents.
2012
November 30, 2012
House Bill 915 Implementation Workgroup
Facilitating the House Bill 915 Implementation Workgroup on psychotropic medication for foster youth at the request of the Texas Supreme Court Permanent Judicial Commission for Children, Youth and Families.
November 30, 2012
Planning Committee for Meadows Mental Health Institute
Serving on the Planning Committee for the Meadows Mental Health Institute at the request of the Meadows Foundation.
November 30, 2012
Public Private Parternship on Foster Care Redesign
Texas Department of Family and Protective Services
November 30, 2012
Advisory Council
U.T. School of Social Work
November 30, 2012
Trauma Informed Care Assessment Workgroup
Texas Department of Family and Protective Services