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Family Courts (family + court)
Terms modified by Family Courts Selected AbstractsBEYOND POLITICS AND POSITIONS: A CALL FOR COLLABORATION BETWEEN FAMILY COURT AND DOMESTIC VIOLENCE PROFESSIONALSFAMILY COURT REVIEW, Issue 3 2008Peter Salem The domestic violence advocacy and family court communities have each grown dramatically over the last three decades. Although these professional communities share many values in common, they often find themselves at odds with one another on a host of issues. This article examines the practical, political, definitional, and ideological differences between the two communities and calls for them to join forces and collaborate on behalf of children and families. [source] A CRITICAL EXAMINATION OF THE SUITABILITY AND LIMITATIONS OF PSYCHOLOGICAL TESTS IN FAMILY COURTFAMILY COURT REVIEW, Issue 2 2007Steven K. Erickson Psychologists are frequently consulted by the courts to provide forensic evaluations in a variety of family court proceedings. As part of their evaluations, psychologists often use psychological tests to assess parents, guardians, and children. These tests can have profound effects on how psychologists arrive at their opinions and are often cited in their reports to the court. However, psychological tests vary substantially in their suitability for these purposes. Most projective tests in particular appear to possess little scientific merit for evaluations within family court proceedings. Despite these serious limitations, expert testimony derived from evaluations using both projective and objective tests is often admitted uncontested. This article reviews the psychometric properties of psychological tests that are widely used in family court proceedings, cautions against their unfettered use, and calls upon attorneys to inform themselves of the limitations of evaluations that incorporate these tests. [source] INTRODUCTION TO SPECIAL ISSUE ON UNIFIED FAMILY COURTSFAMILY COURT REVIEW, Issue 2 2008Barbara A. Babb No abstract is available for this article. [source] SUMMIT ON UNIFIED FAMILY COURTS: SERVING CHILDREN AND FAMILIES EFFICIENTLY, EFFECTIVELY, AND RESPONSIBLYFAMILY COURT REVIEW, Issue 2 2008Karen J. Mathis As president of the American Bar Association when the "Summit on Unified Family Courts" convened in May 2007, Karen J. Mathis welcomed summit attendees. Recounting the many reasons children wind up in court, Mathis observed that society is lucky if these problems even come before the courts. Too often, she said, the underlying problems of destructive behavior among youth are lost in the shuffle of too many lawyers, case workers, and judges. "Many times they're ignored by the professionals among us who are not trained to be aware that the problems even exist," she said. The solution to this fragmented approach is unified family courts, she concluded. [source] THE AMERICAN BAR ASSOCIATION AND UNIFIED FAMILY COURTSFAMILY COURT REVIEW, Issue 1 2004Introduction to a Survey No abstract is available for this article. [source] PACT: A Collaborative Team Model for Treating High Conflict Families in Family CourtJUVENILE AND FAMILY COURT JOURNAL, Issue 2 2009Joe H. Brown ABSTRACT This article describes a court-community model program for high conflict divorced families that is designed to reduce the level of inter-parental conflict including: a) child exposure to inter-parental conflict; and b) the frequency of re-litigation over residential arrangements and parenting plans. The six-session (16-hour) program combines conflict resolution and group/community support. The program provides a "Personal Support Team" and "Personal Plan of Action" to help each parent control emotions and maintain agreement. The results of research conducted to explore the effect of the program on level of triangulation and inter-parental conflict, as well as the frequency of re-litigation over parenting plans, residential arrangements, and parenting time are reported. [source] Zero to Three: Critical Issues for the Juvenile and Family CourtJUVENILE AND FAMILY COURT JOURNAL, Issue 2 2004JULIE COHEN ABSTRACT Infants are the fastest growing population in foster care. Without intervention they are at great risk of poor developmental outcomes. Juvenile and family courts have a unique opportunity to make a positive difference in the lives of the babies in their care. This article outlines six critical issues that impact the development of very young children in the child welfare system and recommends strategies that juvenile and family courts can use to address the needs of this most vulnerable population. [source] Building Bridges for Babies in Foster Care: The Babies Can't Wait InitiativeJUVENILE AND FAMILY COURT JOURNAL, Issue 2 2004SHERYL DICKER ABSTRACT In 2001, the New York State Permanent Judicial Commission on Justice for Children, chaired by New York State's Chief Judge Judith Kaye, developed the Babies Can't Wait Initiative to maximize the well-being and permanency prospects of infants in foster care. This court-based innovation became a path to healthy development for babies in foster care, a bridge to unprecedented collaboration among the New York City Family Court, child welfare system, and service providers and merged knowledge about child development with court and child welfare practice. This article tells the story of the Babies Can't Wait Initiative,its creation, implementation, successes, and lessons. [source] System Change through Collaboration,Eight Steps for Getting from There to HereJUVENILE AND FAMILY COURT JOURNAL, Issue 4 2002JUDGE SHARON S. TOWNSEND ABSTRACT Family courts and child welfare agencies across the country are charged with protecting the safety of our children. That mission has become more challenging with increasing federal legislation and decreasing funding. In Buffalo, N.Y., the Family Court and the Department of Social Services have teamed up to respond to this challenge. With minimal additional staffing and resources, they have led a collaboration of agencies and service providers to change the way business is done in child welfare. By engaging each other in an interagency system change effort, the amount of time children spend in foster care has been reduced. The collaboration has been able to accomplish in a relatively short time what no agency had previously been able to accomplish on its own. The beneficiaries have been the children and families of Erie County. [source] Fetal Alcohol Spectrum,The Hidden Epidemic in Our CourtsJUVENILE AND FAMILY COURT JOURNAL, Issue 4 2001KATHRYN PAGE PH.D. ABSTRACT This article discusses the basics of Fetal Alcohol Syndrome and Fetal Alcohol Effects (FAS/E): the history, nature, prevalence, causes, and effects of prenatal exposure to alcohol. Some of the unique features of FAS/E are explored, particularly those that make it so hard to spot and those that predispose people to nonproductive or criminal activity. The presentation of FAS/E in Juvenile Court is discussed and put in the context of the multiplicity of factors pertaining to delinquency; finally, innovative interventions, approaches and resources are laid out. Issues surrounding FAS/E as they appear in Family Court are then explored, with emphasis on the intergenerational transmission of this array of conditions and how we might interrupt such transmission. [source] The Prevalence and Outcomes of Care Proceedings Involving Parents with Learning Difficulties in the Family CourtsJOURNAL OF APPLIED RESEARCH IN INTELLECTUAL DISABILITIES, Issue 1 2005Tim Booth Background, Parents with learning difficulties are known to face a high risk of losing their children. This paper reports findings from a study designed to throw light on the numbers of parents with learning difficulties and their children coming before the Family Courts in Children Act proceedings and what happened to them as a result. Method, The paper presents descriptive information on the characteristics of the parents and children, the basis of professional concerns in these cases, and details of the final outcomes and placement decisions extracted from a documentary review of court files. Results, Parents with learning difficulties were found to be disproportionately represented in care proceedings and their children were significantly more likely to be freed for adoption than the children of any other group of parents. Conclusions, On the basis of the research evidence, parents with learning difficulties appear to be treated more harshly because of their disability, raising the question of the interface between disability discrimination legislation and the Children Act in such cases. [source] System Change through Collaboration,Eight Steps for Getting from There to HereJUVENILE AND FAMILY COURT JOURNAL, Issue 4 2002JUDGE SHARON S. TOWNSEND ABSTRACT Family courts and child welfare agencies across the country are charged with protecting the safety of our children. That mission has become more challenging with increasing federal legislation and decreasing funding. In Buffalo, N.Y., the Family Court and the Department of Social Services have teamed up to respond to this challenge. With minimal additional staffing and resources, they have led a collaboration of agencies and service providers to change the way business is done in child welfare. By engaging each other in an interagency system change effort, the amount of time children spend in foster care has been reduced. The collaboration has been able to accomplish in a relatively short time what no agency had previously been able to accomplish on its own. The beneficiaries have been the children and families of Erie County. [source] FAMILY COURTS-20 YEARS AFTER REFORMFAMILY COURT REVIEW, Issue 3 2002Social Change: Address to the Conference of the Family Courts of Australia, The Family Court, at Sydney, on Thursday 26 July 200 The Rt. Hon. Dame Elias discusses the changes the people of Australia and New Zealand have seen and can expect from their respective family courts. She goes on to say that if judges of the family court are to play a more positive role in society, they need to stay abreast of what is happening with current legal trends as they relate to the "best interest of the child" standard, equal rights (especially between genders), and changing international trends in family law. The Chief Justice also addresses problems concerning lack of legal aid funding and an increase in unrepresented litigants. The Chief Justice explains that these issues and problems can best be dealt with through legislative reform as well as family court reform. Where there is an influx of additional resources better preparing judges to deal specifically with those seeking justice in the family court, these additional resources should also lead to a greater general understanding of current trends in the community. Chief Justice Elias asserts that without community support, these issues cannot be resolved. [source] STRATEGIES AND NEED FOR SYSTEMS CHANGEFAMILY COURT REVIEW, Issue 2 2000Improving Court Practice for the Millennium Chief Judge Judith S. Kaye of New York delivered the following address to the Millennium Conference of the National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges in Washington, D.C., on November 15, 1999. In it, she describes the development of the philosophy of the family court in the past century. Judge Kaye describes the family court's transition from reliance on social science to the incorporation of procedural due process guarantees in the Gault decision. She suggests that a further transformation is required to meet the needs of children and families in the 21st century. Judge Kaye proposes that in the next millennium the family court abandon the "remote adjudicator" judge who evolved after Gault to a "problem-solving model of judging, a judge who looks at the issues that are driving the caseload, who looks at the results that are being achieved, and who uses a hands-on style to figure out how we might do better both in individual cases and on a systemic level." The New York Times described Chief Justice Kaye as, "A dedicated and effective reformer of the state's sprawling court system. Each of her hard won changes has had a positive impact." Chief Judge Kaye recently received the National Center for State Courts' William H. Rhenquist Award for Judicial Excellence in November 1999. On the occasion of the award, Roger K. Warren, president of the National Center, observed about her,"There are many who are working hard to better process the many cases that come before the state courts, but there are few working an harder or more successfully to better serve the people who use the state courts." [source] Child Welfare Workers and Michigan's Family Court Legislation: The Relationship Between Policy and PracticeJUVENILE AND FAMILY COURT JOURNAL, Issue 1 2001JOSEPH KOZAKIEWICZ J.D. ABSTRACT Michigan created a family court in 1998, combining in a single court jurisdiction over most family law cases. This study examines the child welfare workers' role in creating the family court, the family court's impact on child welfare workers' practice, and child welfare workers' efforts to educate other professionals on the potential benefits of the family court system. This study found that child welfare workers were not actively involved in the creation of the family court and have not aggressively sought to educate other professionals regarding the family court's potential. Further, though child welfare workers' reception of the family court has largely been positive (or at least neutral), child welfare workers must take greater advantage of the family court system to improve the effectiveness of their practice. [source] SUMMIT ON UNIFIED FAMILY COURTS: SERVING CHILDREN AND FAMILIES EFFICIENTLY, EFFECTIVELY, AND RESPONSIBLYFAMILY COURT REVIEW, Issue 2 2008Karen J. Mathis As president of the American Bar Association when the "Summit on Unified Family Courts" convened in May 2007, Karen J. Mathis welcomed summit attendees. Recounting the many reasons children wind up in court, Mathis observed that society is lucky if these problems even come before the courts. Too often, she said, the underlying problems of destructive behavior among youth are lost in the shuffle of too many lawyers, case workers, and judges. "Many times they're ignored by the professionals among us who are not trained to be aware that the problems even exist," she said. The solution to this fragmented approach is unified family courts, she concluded. [source] FAMILY COURTS-20 YEARS AFTER REFORMFAMILY COURT REVIEW, Issue 3 2002Social Change: Address to the Conference of the Family Courts of Australia, The Family Court, at Sydney, on Thursday 26 July 200 The Rt. Hon. Dame Elias discusses the changes the people of Australia and New Zealand have seen and can expect from their respective family courts. She goes on to say that if judges of the family court are to play a more positive role in society, they need to stay abreast of what is happening with current legal trends as they relate to the "best interest of the child" standard, equal rights (especially between genders), and changing international trends in family law. The Chief Justice also addresses problems concerning lack of legal aid funding and an increase in unrepresented litigants. The Chief Justice explains that these issues and problems can best be dealt with through legislative reform as well as family court reform. Where there is an influx of additional resources better preparing judges to deal specifically with those seeking justice in the family court, these additional resources should also lead to a greater general understanding of current trends in the community. Chief Justice Elias asserts that without community support, these issues cannot be resolved. [source] Asking the Right Questions: Utilizing a Judicial Checklist to Track the Educational Success of Youth in Foster CareJUVENILE AND FAMILY COURT JOURNAL, Issue 2 2006SUSAN A. WEISS ABSTRACT Asking about the educational objectives for children in foster care has not been a priority in most juvenile and family courts. Research has shown that compared to the general school population, children in foster care have lower grade point averages, change schools more frequently, earn fewer credits toward graduation, and are more likely to be placed in special education programs. In response, Casey Family Programs, in collaboration with the National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges' Permanency Planning for Children Department, developed a Judicial Checklist with key educational questions to be asked from the bench. The Checklist has become a useful tool for juvenile and family court judges when assessing the effectiveness of current educational placements of the children who come before their courts, tracking their performance, and in making a positive future impact on their educational outcomes. [source] Zero to Three: Critical Issues for the Juvenile and Family CourtJUVENILE AND FAMILY COURT JOURNAL, Issue 2 2004JULIE COHEN ABSTRACT Infants are the fastest growing population in foster care. Without intervention they are at great risk of poor developmental outcomes. Juvenile and family courts have a unique opportunity to make a positive difference in the lives of the babies in their care. This article outlines six critical issues that impact the development of very young children in the child welfare system and recommends strategies that juvenile and family courts can use to address the needs of this most vulnerable population. [source] Divorce Israeli Style: Professional Perceptions of Gender and Power in Mediated and Lawyer-Negotiated DivorcesLAW & POLICY, Issue 2 2006BRYNA BOGOCH This study examines how the power of women is constructed by divorce professionals in a divorce process that is governed by rabbinical family law, the egalitarian ideology of the recently established family courts, and the growing use of mediation in divorce disputes. It is based on 254 questionnaires and 57 interviews with lawyers, mediators, and lawyer-mediators. We found that except for a minority of women lawyers, practitioners claimed that women were not disadvantaged by family law, and that mediation does not adversely affect weaker parties. However, their reactions to hypothetical situations indicated that rabbinical law does matter for women's bargaining power, and for lawyers' recommendations for mediation. This study reveals the complexities of the social construction of gender and power in divorce negotiations and the role of women professionals in empowering divorcing women. [source] Intimate Partner Violence: Development of a Brief Risk Assessment for the Emergency DepartmentACADEMIC EMERGENCY MEDICINE, Issue 11 2009Carolyn Snider MD Abstract Objectives:, Women assaulted by intimate partners are frequently patients in emergency departments (EDs). Many victims and health care providers fail to take into account the potential risks of repeat partner violence. The objective of this study was to use data from a larger study of domestic violence risk assessment methods to develop a brief assessment for acute care settings to identify victims at highest risk for suffering severe injury or potentially lethal assault by an intimate partner or former partner. Methods:, Victims of intimate partner violence (IPV) were interviewed twice between 2002 and 2004. The baseline interview included the 20 items of Campbell's Danger Assessment (DA; predictor). The follow-up interview, conducted 9 months later on average, assessed abuse inflicted since the baseline interview (outcome). Multiple logistic regression was used to identify questions on the DA most predictive of severe abuse and potentially lethal assaults. Female IPV victims were recruited from New York City family courts, Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department 9-1-1 calls, New York City and Los Angeles shelters, and New York City hospitals; 666 women responded to the DA at baseline, and 60% participated in follow-up interviews. Results:, Severe injuries or potentially lethal assaults were experience by 14.9% of retained study participants between the baseline and follow-up interviews. The best brief prediction instrument has five questions. A positive answer to any three questions has a sensitivity of 83% (95% confidence interval = 70.6% to 91.4%). Conclusions:, This instrument can help predict which victims may be at increased risk for severe injury or potentially lethal assault and can aid clinicians in differentiating which patients require comprehensive safety interventions. [source] | |||||||||||||