Family Court Review最新文献

This article examines the critical role of prosecutorial discretion in juvenile transfer decisions through the lens of the American Law Institute's Restatement on Children and the Law. Drawing on current research in adolescent brain development, trauma, and behavioral science, it argues for a developmental approach that resists punitive transfers in favor of individualized, rehabilitative responses. Amid rising youth violence and public pressure for harsher measures, the essay urges prosecutors to reject outdated “tough on crime” narratives and instead lead reform grounded in evidence, equity, and public safety. It highlights the modern stressors impacting youth – including the COVID-19 pandemic and social media – and explains how these factors further justify a restorative, rather than retributive, framework. The article concludes with a call for prosecutors to embrace their ethical duty as reformers, leveraging the Restatement to ensure that juvenile justice policy aligns with both scientific understanding and the moral imperative to treat children as fundamentally different from adults.

The family policing system separates families every day. As a result, children and their parents suffer lifelong, irreversible trauma and a host of other negative consequences. The Restatement acknowledges these harms and directs courts to consider the harms of removal throughout court proceedings when deciding whether a child should be removed from their parents or in determining if reunification is appropriate. The Restatement also highlights the legal standards that apply when the constitutional right to family integrity is at stake. The Restatement therefore makes crucial recommendations for courts who handle these important cases. This Article explains some of the harms that children experience when they are ripped from their parents in family policing proceedings and placed into an unpredictable and often harmful foster system. It highlights the provisions of the Restatement that instruct courts on how and when these harms should be balanced with the risk to the child if they remain at home.

This article describes the many ways in which the Restatement of the Law- Children and the Law, can be used by judges and practitioners throughout the country as a resource for easy access to the law as it relates to children from custody and juvenile issues to the rights of students to free speech in schools.

Postpartum depression can negatively impact a woman's life well past the initial postpartum period. The struggle often lies in the difficulty to diagnose, and then adequately treat the condition. Further, with such limited unpaid maternity leave offered federally through the Family Medical Leave Act, women often struggle to have enough time and financial resources to access necessary treatment. This Note proposes alternative options for supporting women who suffer from postpartum depression in offering extended and fully paid maternity leave for private and public employees that is funded by contributions split between the employer and employee.

Family violence and coercive control are increasingly being recognized in legislation and practice as critical factors to consider in determining children's best interests in making appropriate post-separation parenting arrangements. Professional practices have also become more trauma and violence-informed and better able to recognize and respond to the impact of violence on survivors and their children. Assessing the validity and context of family violence allegations is critical for making appropriate post-separation parenting arrangements. In cases where there are family violence concerns, court responses need to take account of the potential harm that perpetrators present to the children and the other parent. Findings of family violence should lead to a differentiated approach to parenting arrangements depending on the severity and history of family violence and coercive control, the timing of the disclosures, and the resources available to address safety for the adult victim and children. Arrangements may vary according to the potential need for restrictive parenting time, and may include supervised exchanges, supervised parenting, or no parenting time. This article reviews literature and legal developments to proposes a framework for better understanding and responding to continuing post-separation effects of domestic violence and coercive control.

Can absolute prosecutorial discretion in youth charging decisions—like that allowed under Title 16 in the District of Columbia—continue to withstand legal, scientific, and policy-based scrutiny? The recently-approved Restatement of Children and the Law adds to the weight of authorities casting further doubt on the wisdom of such discretion. Most jurisdictions do not permit prosecutors to charge children in adult court unilaterally, requiring a transfer hearing and constitutional safeguards. Among the few that allow “direct file” transfers, nearly all provide some form of judicial review, generally through reverse waiver provisions. D.C., however, stands alone in giving unelected federal prosecutors at the United States Attorney’s Office unchecked authority to charge 16- and 17-year-olds as adults, without any opportunity for judicial review. This approach is at odds with current research on adolescent brain development and the constitutional protections for youth that have evolved alongside it.

Drawing on the Restatement, this article examines the broader national move away from “direct file” transfer authority, exposing the glaring persistence of outdated practices in D.C. It revisits the failed 2021 legislative reform effort before the D.C. Council to eliminate the U.S. Attorney’s “direct file” authority, and argues that, in the absence of legislative change, legal advocates may need to pursue reform through the courts—particularly given Title 16’s potential vulnerability under the Eighth Amendment’s prohibition on cruel and unusual punishment. Ultimately, the article contends that the Restatement, through its “child wellbeing” framework, offers not only a clear articulation of where transfer laws currently stand and how D.C.’s practice diverges but also suggests where the law might ought to be going and provides materials from which law reform advocates can construct futures legal challenges to laws like Title 16.

This paper reports on two related studies on the experiences of Ontario therapists, parenting evaluators, child protection service (CPS) staff, and lawyers for parents, children and CPS about parent–child contact problem cases involving claims of parental alienation. One qualitative study was based on interviews with 62 professionals (45 parents' lawyers and 17 therapists) involved in reported Ontario cases between 2010 and 2022 where the court made a finding of parental alienation. The second qualitative study was based on nine focus groups with 50 Ontario professionals (31 children's lawyers, four CPS lawyers, five CPS workers and 10 parenting evaluators) about their experiences with this type of high conflict separation case. The majority of professionals in both studies found that parents in these cases are often very challenging clients. The professionals shared their frustration that the family justice system is slow to respond and has few effective legal responses or clinical resources that can provide appropriate services for these cases. The studies highlight the complexity of these cases and the need for the family justice system to better provide coordinated legal and clinical responses for these families. There is a need for more evidence-based collaborative interdisciplinary practice, research and professional education.

Child Maltreatment is a widespread childhood public health issue. A possible solution to help alleviate child maltreatment as a public health issue is the improvement of interstate communication among Child Protective Agencies, holding interstate perpetrators accountable for their abuse and neglect of children. The government recognized the need for interstate communication in 2006, but a child maltreatment registry was never created. Interstate communication among agencies is almost non-existent. This Note proposes establishing a National Registry for Founded Cases of Child Maltreatment to boost interstate communication among different Child Welfare agencies to improve investigative techniques and prevention strategies.

A growing phenomenon in this country is the existence of parent social media influencers. These influencers are parents who utilize their children in monetized posts to make money. Whether the parents are getting paid by the number of views they receive, or it is a sponsored post, they are forcing their children to work without pay. This Note proposes a New York state law which provides financial protections for children by requiring they be paid for their work, a part of that payment goes into a trust, and imposing civil penalties for parents who violate the law.