Damned for Using Daycare: Appellate Brief of Jennifer Ireland in \u3cem\u3eIreland V. Smith\u3c/em\u3e

At issue is custody of three-and-a-half-year-old Maranda (date of birth: April 22, 1991). The trial court found that Maranda had an established custodial environment with her mother, Jennifer Ireland, but then nominally ordered custody changed to Steven Smith. The court\u27s order changing custody was based on a determination that day care is an inappropriate choice for care of a preschool child, and that no one effectively can be a single parent and a student at the same time. Those findings have no factual basis in the record, no legal basis under Michigan law, and no logical or even common sense basis at all. In addition, the trial court in effect gave custody of Maranda not to Smith, but to his parents, who were not even parties to the custody action

Damned for Using Daycare: Appellate Brief of Jennifer Ireland in \u3cem\u3eIreland V. Smith\u3c/em\u3e

At issue is custody of three-and-a-half-year-old Maranda (date of birth: April 22, 1991). The trial court found that Maranda had an established custodial environment with her mother, Jennifer Ireland, but then nominally ordered custody changed to Steven Smith. The court\u27s order changing custody was based on a determination that day care is an inappropriate choice for care of a preschool child, and that no one effectively can be a single parent and a student at the same time. Those findings have no factual basis in the record, no legal basis under Michigan law, and no logical or even common sense basis at all. In addition, the trial court in effect gave custody of Maranda not to Smith, but to his parents, who were not even parties to the custody action

Judging Girls: Decision Making in Parental Consent to Abortion Cases

Judges make determinations on a daily basis that profoundly affect people\u27s lives. On March 28, 1991, the Michigan legislature enacted a statute entitled The Parental Rights Restoration Act (hereinafter the Michigan Act or the Act ). This statute delegated to probate court judges the extraordinary task of deciding whether a minor girl may have an abortion without the consent of a parent. Nothing in law school and little in an average judge\u27s experience provide a meaningful framework for making such a decision. Although many commentators, including the authors, argue that decisions about abortion should be left to the woman regardless of her age, or to the judgment of her doctor, or to counselors, this decision now rests with probate judges. As clinical law professors and, thus, practicing attorneys, we have represented several minor girls in their attempts to receive waivers of parental consent to abortion under the Michigan Act. We were also active in developing procedural rules to implement the statute and are involved in training attorneys to represent girls in judicial waiver hearings. Therefore, we have personally witnessed the implementation of the Act thus far in Michigan. We intend to provide a framework for judicial decision making under the Act by drawing on our personal experiences, reviewing treatment of parental consent cases by other courts, and considering what the discipline of psychology can tell us about adolescents. Ultimately, we offer certain presumptions that Michigan judges should apply, and we delineate those matters that are irrelevant to the inquiry into a minor girl\u27s maturity and best interests

Court Review: Volume 39, Issue 2 - Screening for Domestic Violence: Meeting the Challenge of Identifying Domestic Relations Cases Involving Domestic Violence and Developing Strategies for Those Cases

Domestic abuse is common. It includes emotional and psychological abuse as well as physical assaults. Children are harmed by it, even if they are not the direct victims of the physical violence. Because domestic abuse is so prevalent and its effects are so far-reaching, court personnel must educate themselves to understand domestic violence and determine strategies for handling cases where it is present. Even if domestic violence is present but does not seem to have a direct impact on the case at hand, one should be aware of the power and control dynamics of domestic abuse to provide effective intervention in domestic violence cases. Screening for domestic violence is important because it can provide information that can help courts make better decisions about the cases before them. Domestic violence is a critical fact in determining the process and the outcome in a domestic relations case. Without an understanding of domestic violence in general and knowledge about whether there is domestic violence in a particular case, the decision maker could erroneously be making orders that (1) increase danger to the victim and children, including the danger of lethality, and (2) reduce the resources available to the victim, thus increasing the likelihood that the violence and abuse will continue. Before the court orders mediation or other alternative processes, it should look into screening for domestic violence to ensure that the process of mediation can be effective, and not coercive or revictimizing

Judging Girls: Decision Making in Parental Consent to Abortion Cases

Judges make determinations on a daily basis that profoundly affect people\u27s lives. On March 28, 1991, the Michigan legislature enacted a statute entitled The Parental Rights Restoration Act (hereinafter the Michigan Act or the Act ). This statute delegated to probate court judges the extraordinary task of deciding whether a minor girl may have an abortion without the consent of a parent. Nothing in law school and little in an average judge\u27s experience provide a meaningful framework for making such a decision. Although many commentators, including the authors, argue that decisions about abortion should be left to the woman regardless of her age, or to the judgment of her doctor, or to counselors, this decision now rests with probate judges. As clinical law professors and, thus, practicing attorneys, we have represented several minor girls in their attempts to receive waivers of parental consent to abortion under the Michigan Act. We were also active in developing procedural rules to implement the statute and are involved in training attorneys to represent girls in judicial waiver hearings. Therefore, we have personally witnessed the implementation of the Act thus far in Michigan. We intend to provide a framework for judicial decision making under the Act by drawing on our personal experiences, reviewing treatment of parental consent cases by other courts, and considering what the discipline of psychology can tell us about adolescents. Ultimately, we offer certain presumptions that Michigan judges should apply, and we delineate those matters that are irrelevant to the inquiry into a minor girl\u27s maturity and best interests