SUMMIT ON UNIFIED FAMILY COURTS: SERVING CHILDREN AND FAMILIES EFFICIENTLY, EFFECTIVELY, AND RESPONSIBLY

• Author: Karen J. Mathis
• Date: 01 April 2008
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.1111/j.1744-1617.2008.00196.x
• Published date: 01 April 2008

FAMILY COURT REVIEW, Vol. 46 No. 2, April 2008 227–229

© 2008 Association of Family and Conciliation Courts

Blackwell Publishing IncMalden, USAFCREFamily Court Review1531-2445© Association of Family and Conciliation Courts, 2008XXXOriginal Articles

Mathis/SUMMIT ON UNIFIED FAMILY COURTSFAMILY COURT REVIEW

SUMMIT ON UNIFIED FAMILY COURTS:

SERVING CHILDREN AND FAMILIES EFFICIENTLY,

EFFECTIVELY, AND RESPONSIBLY

Karen 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.

Keywords:

juvenile

;

children

;

unified family court

;

American Bar Association

;

ABA

;

diversion

;

intervention

It’s about our children.

If there’s one thing we can all bring to—and take from—this conference, that’s it.

It’s about our children.

Over the next two days, you will use your expertise and experience to discuss court

structures, bureaucracies, funding issues, politics, and other important and difficult issues.

You are doing a wonderful thing by taking the time to work them out here.

If we want to truly succeed at this conference, however, we must not lose sight of the

simple fact of why we’re here.

It’s about our children. Think of them the next two days and beyond.

As you hear the experts and discuss issues among yourselves today and tomorrow,

remember:

•Our children do not choose to get their parents divorced.

•They do not choose to be abused and neglected.

•They do not choose to witness violence in their homes.

•They do not choose to be assigned to foster care.

•They do not choose to be in households where alcohol and drugs are abused.

•They do not choose their adoptive or foster parents.

•They do not choose the amount of child support they need. And they do not choose

whether their parents will meet their child support obligations.

•They do not choose the terms of their parents’ visitation and custody rights.

•And, as many of us would argue, our children do not choose the limitations on

their lives that lead them to behavior like chronically skipping school, committing

vandalism and violence, and behaving in other ways that are both self-defeating

and destructive of our society.