Family Law Commons^™

Results Of A Judicial Survey On The Maryland Department Of Juvenile Services, Gloria Danziger, Barbara A. Babb

All Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Time To Decide? The Laws Governing Mothers' Consents To The Adoption Of Their Newborn Infants, Elizabeth Samuels

All Faculty Scholarship

Adoption in the United States is a complex patchwork of law and practice that involves payments of nearly two billion dollars annually in fees and expenses. The adoptions that involve domestically born, voluntarily placed infants raise unique issues. In these as in all adoptions involving parental consent, two generally accepted goals of ethical and humane practice are first, avoiding unnecessary separation of families by ensuring that birth parents make informed and deliberate decisions and second, protecting the finality of placements. The two goals are ideally complementary, but in the case of domestic infant adoptions, there is a danger that pressure …

Law's Nobility, Robin West

Georgetown Law Faculty Publications and Other Works

This article first aims to set out the feminist theory of Catharine MacKinnon as explicitly as possible and in a way that accounts for its incredible power. To strengthen MacKinnon's theoretical project, the article proposes some modifications to the original that are drawn from, in part, the critiques of queer theorists. The crucial departure proposed here concerns MacKinnon's "critique of desire," which in my view is deeply mistaken. Rather than distrusting the sexual desires of women as hopelessly polluted by subordination, we should be neutral -- neither critical nor confident -- regarding the degree to which our desires, if fulfilled, …

Marriage And Some Troubling Issues With No-Fault Divorce, Peter N. Swisher

Law Faculty Publications

The purpose of this Article is to challenge these erroneous assumptions, that fault is "no longer an issue" in modem American divorce law, and that a spouse on divorce should not be compensated for his or her non-economic contributions to the marriage and to the well-being of the family.

The Practice Of Marriage, Katharine B. Silbaugh

Faculty Scholarship

Over the past 40 years, robust law has developed addressing the treatment of non-marital cohabitants. Consequently, the government's gatekeeping role operates somewhat differently than before. States are now more clearly policing the social benefits and the symbolism accompanying marriage, having agreed to provide many of its legal benefits to non-marital couples. This article investigates the state's current role in articulating and managing, as well as responding to, the social meaning of marriage in the context of three recent high profile cases: the prosecution of polygamist Tom Green, the Goodridge same sex marriage case in Massachusetts, and the challenge to Michael …

A Defense Of Paid Family Leave, Gillian Lester

Faculty Scholarship

The problem of combining work and family life is perhaps the central challenge for the contemporary American family. In this Article, I evaluate and defend government provision of paid family leave, a benefit that would allow workers to take compensated time off from work for purposes of family caregiving.

A legal intervention in the arena of work-family accommodation can only build on some prior normative understanding of the family, and embedded within that, contested value choices about women's identities and entitlements in workplace, family, and society. I am not the first legal scholar to advocate paid family leave of some …

Child Custody, Religious Practices, And Conscience, Kent Greenawalt

Faculty Scholarship

This article asks to what extent considerations relating to religion should figure in custody disputes. One inquiry is whether the kind of religious life that a parent plans for his or her child should figure in the decision whether to grant custody to that parent. The article focuses on a religious life that involves very substantial deprivation no after-school activities, no television, no pets, no reading except schoolwork and the Bible-from an ordinary secular perspective. A second inquiry is whether one parent of a divorced couple should be able to prevent the other parent from exposing a child to various …

Domestic Violance In The First-Year Torts Curriculum, Jennifer B. Wriggins

Journal of Legal Education

No abstract provided.

Intimate Partner Violence And The Justice System: An Examination Of The Interface, Carol E. Jordan

Office for Policy Studies on Violence Against Women Publications

Women entering the court system face a challenging experience, in part, because a courtroom can be an intimidating and difficult place for any person, and in part because women victimized by crimes in which the offender is known to them face distinctive difficulties when they seek the court’s remedies. The interface is also made more challenging for women as the literature offers disparate findings as to the efficacy of criminal justice responses and civil remedies. This article briefly explores the unique characteristics of intimate partner violence cases that influence the interface of these victims with the court system.Areviewis provided of …

Toward A National Research Agenda On Violence Against Women: Continuing The Dialogue On Research And Practice [Part Two], Carol E. Jordan

Office for Policy Studies on Violence Against Women Publications

No abstract provided.

Domestic Relations, Barry B. Mcgough, Gregory R. Miller

Mercer Law Review

Of the domestic relations appellate cases decided during this survey period, twenty-three are discussed below. Georgia law requires that appeals of domestic relations cases occur through the discretionary application process. A party wanting to appeal an order in a domestic relations case must first file an application to obtain the permission of the appropriate appellate court to file an appeal. As part of a pilot project, the Georgia Supreme Court began accepting all "non-frivolous" applications filed in domestic relations cases during the 2003 calendar year. The supreme court extended the pilot project for the 2004 calendar year; however, the supreme …

Legal Images Of Fatherhood: Welfare Reform, Child Support Enforcement, And Fatherless Children, Jane C. Murphy

ExpressO

This Article analyzes the issue of paternity disestablishment, an issue courts and legislatures have been struggling with over the last several years. For a variety of reasons explored in this Article, an increasing number of fathers have filed requests to set aside paternity orders seeking to be relieved of the legal obligations of fatherhood. As a result families have been destabilized and children are becoming fatherless. The implications for the future of the family are profound. Although some scholars have examined this phenomenon, none have addressed the link between paternity disestablishment and welfare reform.

This Article explores the law's evolving …

Toward A National Research Agenda On Violence Against Women: Continuing The Dialogue On Research And Practice [Part One], Carol E. Jordan

Office for Policy Studies on Violence Against Women Publications

No abstract provided.

Making Mommies: The Washington State Court Of Appeals Exceeded Its Authority By Creating A Common Law Parentage Action In In Re Parentage Of L.B., Thomas G. Robinson-O'Neill

Washington Law Review

In In re Parentage of L.B., Division I of the Washington State Court of Appeals created a new common law cause of action that allows a same-sex de facto parent to be declared a legal parent. In the alternative, the court held that a de facto parent has a cause of action under Washington's nonparental visitation statute. This Note argues that the court exceeded its authority in creating a common law cause of action because the Uniform Parentage Act and the statutory scheme preempt the common law. Further, this Note argues that the ability of a de facto parent …

Family And Juvenile Law, Robert E. Shepherd Jr.

University of Richmond Law Review

No abstract provided.

Lawmaking By Public Welfare Professionals, Margaret F. Brinig

ExpressO

In an era of shrinking state and local resources for domestic violence prevention and detection, governments face a critical question of how to best allocate scarce funds. This paper suggests some answers for treating violence by caregivers and presents a model for evaluating other programs. To reach our conclusions, we analyzed data and survey results supplied by more than 1700 county-level adult protective services (APS) authorities.

We found that some expensive programs produce very few results in terms of reporting, investigating, and substantiating elder abuse. For example, requiring a specific education or experience level (and therefore guaranteeing higher salaries) or …

Asking The Family Question, Berta E. Hernández-Truyol

UF Law Faculty Publications

Today, the international community is taking strides to address the needs/concerns of the family and to develop norms regarding its protection. However, principles of international law that address issues regarding the family are relatively new. Moreover, to date, these principles have primarily focused on certain specific rights, such as children's rights, women's rights, and child labor rights, rather than incorporating family well-being as a central aim of all international law and relations. This essay proposes a fundamental shift in the approach to international policy and law-making, as well as the engagement of international relations, to include a family-sensitive, culturally inclusive, …

"Well-Behaved Women Don't Make History": Rethinking English Family, Law, And History, Danaya C. Wright

UF Law Faculty Publications

In 1857 Parliament finally succumbed to public and political pressure and passed a bill creating a domestic relations court: the Court for Divorce and Matrimonial Causes. This new court for the first time in common-law history, combined the following jurisdictions: the ecclesiastical court's jurisdiction over marital validity and separation; the Chancery court's jurisdiction over child custody and equitable estates; the common-law court's jurisdiction over property; and Parliament's jurisdiction over divorce and marital settlements. Wives were given the legal right to seek a divorce or judicial separation in a court of law, receive custody of the children of the marriage, and …

Ineffective Assistance Of Counsel In Parental-Rights Termination Cases: The Challenge For Appellate Courts, Susan Calkins

The Journal of Appellate Practice and Process

No abstract provided.

The Alley Behind First Street, Northeast: Criminal Abortion In The Nation's Capital, 1872-1973, Douglas R. Miller

William & Mary Journal of Race, Gender, and Social Justice

No abstract provided.

The Paradox Of Unmarried Fathers And The Constitution: Biology "Plus" Defines Relationships; Biology Alone Safeguards The Public Fisc, Laura Oren

William & Mary Journal of Race, Gender, and Social Justice

No abstract provided.

I Now Pronounce You Husband And Wives: Lawrence V. Texas And The Practice Of Polygamy In Modern America, Cassiah M. Ward

William & Mary Journal of Race, Gender, and Social Justice

No abstract provided.

Choices And Commitments For Women: Challenging The Supreme Court Of Canada In The Context Of Social Assitance, Mary Jane Mossman

Osgoode Hall Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Measuring The Effects Of Feminist Legal Research: Looking Critically At "Failure" And "Success", Lisa Philipps

Osgoode Hall Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Growing Pains: The Scope Of Substantive Due Process Rights Of Parents Of Adult Children, Issac J.K. Adams

Vanderbilt Law Review

On February 2, 1958, Milwaukee city police officer Thomas Grady shot and killed 23-year-old Daniel Bell. Officer Grady immediately attempted to cover up the incident, enlisting the help of a fellow officer to place a knife in Daniel's hand and concoct a fictional account of the event. It was only years later, in 1978, that an investigation revealed the true circumstances of Mr. Bell's death. A year after this discovery, the estate of Daniel's father, Dolphus Bell, instituted an action under 42 U.S.C. ? 1983 alleging that the shooting was unconstitutionally, racially motivated, and the death of Daniel Bell deprived …

The Peculiar Federal Marriage Amendment, Scott Dodson

Faculty Publications

In this essay, I discuss the Constitution's commitment to three themes - state power over familial matters, individual liberty, and equality - and then demonstrate how the proposed Federal Marriage Amendment is uniquely contrary to all three. I do not intend to go so far as to suggest that the FMA would be an unconstitutional amendment, if such things are possible, nor do I mean to suggest that same-sex marriage is or should be affirmatively protected by the Constitution. I mean only to suggest that proposed amendments altering the Constitution's commitment to multiple existing themes in the Constitution should be …

Gender Assignment Surgery For Intersexed Infants: How The Substantive Due Process Right To Privacy Both Supports And Opposes A Moratorium, Sara A. Aliabadi

W&M Law Student Publications

No abstract provided.

Feminism, Law, And Public Policy: Family Feuds And Taxing Times, Susan B. Boyd, Claire F. L. Young

Osgoode Hall Law Journal

This article offers a retrospective analysis of feminist research on tax and family law and developments in these fields since the early 1980s. We identify the sometimes contradictory trends-both in legislation and in case law-that raise questions about the influence that feminist research has had on these areas of law. We then flag some ongoing challenges confronting feminists engaged in law reform efforts. Some common themes will emerge, but notable differences are also evident in the ways that feminist thought has played out in tax and family law.

Rescuing Children From The Marriage Movement: The Case Against Marital Restrictions On Adoption And Assisted Reproduction, Richard F. Storrow

ExpressO

Much of the current cultural debate about marriage in the United States focuses on the need for children to be raised by heterosexual married couples. In the current atmosphere, it is important to examine how marriage functions in contexts where parent-child relationships are determined by more than just genetics and marital presumptions. This Article argues that the favoritism toward marriage in adoption and assisted reproduction relates neither to the purposes of marriage nor to child welfare. Part I subjects marital restrictions on assisted reproduction to an interpretivist microscope, and Part II undertakes a comprehensive comparison of step-parent adoption and second-parent …

Domestic Violence, Gender-Related Asylum And In Re R.A., Bryn D. Powell

Buffalo Women's Law Journal

No abstract provided.