U.S. District Judge Marvin Shoob ruled Thursday that Fulton County has vastly improved it's legal protection of foster children in abuse and neglect cases and no longer needs federal oversight.

The county, which agreed to court oversight to settle a 2002 lawsuit, now has an Office of Child Attorney with 16 lawyers. Fulton had only four lawyers for 2,000 foster children when the lawsuit was filed.

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Fulton DA Fani Willis (center) with Nathan J. Wade (right), the special prosecutor she hired to manage the Trump case and had a romantic relationship with, at a news conference announcing charges against President-elect Donald Trump and others in Atlanta, Aug. 14, 2023. Georgia’s Supreme Court on Tuesday, Sept. 16, 2025, upheld an appeals court's decision to disqualify Willis from the election interference case against Trump and his allies. (Kenny Holston/New York Times)

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