Family Court Review, Volume 62, Issue 2, Page 257-263, April 2024 ..read more

Abstract New York Domestic Relations Law Section 110, which outlines who can adopt, precludes married petitioners from adopting without their spouse joining in the adoption petition, even when all parties involved support the adoption, and it is in the child's best interests. Some judges have prioritized the child's best interests and granted adoptions in such cases, while others have rigidly construed the statute and denied them. Amending the statute so that anyone can adopt, regardless of marital status, if it is in the child's best interests would ensure the child's best interests are the j ..read more

Abstract Families experiencing separation and divorce often find it difficult to provide emotional stability for children as the parents struggle with financial, parenting, and relationship decisions. The effect on children can be especially precarious. Adverse childhood experiences, or ACEs, are risk factors that potentially affect children for the rest of their lives. Parental separation and divorce are identified as adverse childhood experiences and the experiences of stress and loss, reduced parental effectiveness, and exposure to parental conflict, among other stressors, may explain some ..read more

Abstract Juvenile and family law uniquely require interdisciplinary education and experience to balance children's and families' legal rights with their best interests. Clinical legal education provides third-year law students with advanced and applied experience in a specific area of law to prepare them for legal practice. Recent developments in clinical legal education advance this experience by integrating interdisciplinary experts and reflective practice into clinics. The Children's Justice Clinic is one such clinic that integrates classroom teaching, clinical legal practice, multidiscipli ..read more

Abstract Parent–child contact problems (PCCP) are among the most vexing and intractable matters encountered in contemporary divorce and post-divorce litigation. These complex and incendiary family dynamics can confound even the most experienced evaluators, investigators, and jurists, fueling opposing confirmational biases, and sparking a destructive tug-of-war between the aligned parent's allegations of abuse and the rejected parent's allegations of alienation. This article describes all such either/or binary arguments as misleading, contrary to the science, and harmful to children. Rather tha ..read more

Abstract Femtech refers to electronic devices, software, or other technology relating to women's health. Employers are contributing to the rapid growth of femtech by adopting femtech products for workplace wellness programs. Due to a lack of federal laws or regulations, employers can access the personal, intimate information their employees record in these femtech products which can subject employees to pregnancy discrimination. Congress must enact a comprehensive consumer rights law and give the Federal Trade Commission more plenary power to prevent femtech companies from selling consumers' p ..read more

Abstract New York's Child–Parent Security Act (CPSA) legalized compensated gestational surrogacy and created a simpler way for parents to establish their parental rights when utilizing assisted reproductive technology (ART). While this was a substantial step forward from past antiquated law, the CPSA continues to heavily regulate compensated genetic, otherwise known as traditional, surrogacy making it challenging to use. The CPSA infringes upon the right to procreate by limiting the ART methods available to those wanting to start a family. This Note proposes an amendment to the current CPSA, i ..read more

Family Court Review, EarlyView ..read more

Abstract This article examines the multiple inter-connected and interacting catalysts for past, current and future family court reform. We then, with deep humility and quiet ambition, contemplate the next 50 years and hypothesize about future court reform which we predict will focus on technology. We observe how what was once a fanciful idea for family courts (such as electronic filing and online court events) is realistic today. We contend that, in a similar vein, the technological reforms postulated in this article (such as judgment writing assisted by artificial intelligence) may become the ..read more

Abstract Globalization has fueled the rise of international family disputes, which raise difficult legal issues that cannot be addressed by any court or jurisdiction working alone. These challenges require a considered and coherent response on the international front, supported by the willingness of individual family judges to communicate and cooperate to identify and implement practical solutions. To meet these new challenges, this paper proposes a vision of international family justice as collaborative justice. There are three aspects or phases to the proposed endeavor: (a) the articulation ..read more