Complete Agenda Available for Unified Family Courts Summit, May 2-4
April 16, 2007
Contact: University Relations
Phone: 410.837.5739
The final agenda has been announced for a national conference on Unified Family Courts, to be held in Baltimore May 2-4. Highlights of the two-day conference include remarks and speeches by a number of family law experts and representatives of the family justice system, as well as breakout sessions on how courts can implement reforms and changes in order to create a "seamless" system of adjudicating family law matters.
The conference, "Summit on Unified Family Courts: Serving Children and Families Efficiently, Effectively and Responsibly," will take place at the Baltimore Marriott Inner Harbor, 110 S. Eutaw St. It is sponsored by the University of Baltimore's Center for Families, Children and the Courts; the American Bar Association's Standing Committee on Substance Abuse; and the ABA Judicial Division's National Conference of State Trial Judges Coordinating Council on Unified Family Courts. The summit comes at a time when reforms in the family justice system are receiving increased attention across the United States. Maryland is seen by many as a national leader and model for these reforms, having created five Family Divisions (in Baltimore City and Baltimore, Montgomery, Anne Arundel and Prince George's counties) based on the Unified Family Court model.
Following is the complete agenda for the summit:
Thursday, May 3
8:30 a.m. to 10 a.m.: Plenary Session: What Is a Unified Family Court?
This session will introduce the concept of Unified Family Courts by providing a definition, including a blueprint to establish a Unified Family Court, and by suggesting important theoretical underpinnings.
Led by Barbara A. Babb, associate professor of law and director, Center for Families, Children and the Courts, University of Baltimore School of Law
Unified Family Courts: To Be or Not To Be: A Conversation with Chief Justices
The opening plenary session will feature state chief justices discussing the pros and cons of Unified Family Courts and will address issues relating to the importance of judicial leadership in developing and implementing these courts. Questions that will be addressed include:
• What are the considerations that judges should take into account before launching a UFC initiative?
• How can judges respond to challenges involved in establishing Unified Family Courts, and what are the likely challenges?
• Can and should judges act as conveners for stakeholders interested in considering a UFC model?
• What are the standards and measures that should guide judicial leaders as they develop and implement UFCs?
Barbara Howard, moderator, chair, ABA Standing Committee on Substance Abuse, chair of Summit Planning Committee
Chief Judge Robert Bell, Maryland
Chief Justice Leah Ward Sears, Georgia
10:15 a.m. to 11:45 a.m.: Plenary Session: Advocating for Children and Families in a Unified Family Court
This plenary will feature prominent advocates for families and children. They will discuss a wide range of issues that affect families and children in courts, focusing on the differences between advocating for children and families in a traditional family court and advocating for them in a Unified Family Court. Questions that will be addressed include:
• How can children's interests be promoted within a UFC?
• Is a Unified Family Court more accountable to children and their families than the traditional court setting? If so, how?
• How can a UFC develop and implement a holistic approach to address the needs of children and families?
• Is it easier to advocate for the rights of families and children in a UFC than in a traditional court setting?
Frank Cervone, moderator, executive director, Support Center for Child Advocates, Philadelphia, PA
Anne Haralambie, private practitioner, Tucson, AZ
Daniel Hatcher, assistant professor of law, University of Baltimore School of Law
Jane Spinak, professor of law, Columbia University School of Law, New York, NY
1:45 p.m. to 3 p.m. (repeated 3:15 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.): Breakout Sessions:
TRACK 1
Workshop #1 – Transitioning from Traditional: How to Establish a Unified Family Court
Many states have transitioned from the traditional court system to a Unified Family Court system, and each has tackled numerous challenges along the way. This workshop will identify some of the common issues that a state may encounter when making the transition, such as funding, case coordination and judicial assignment. Participants will learn from other states about how they have addressed these issues and have established a UFC. Panelists will discuss how adequate funding and resources for the front end of the court process via improved services for families and children can reduce costs at the back end of the process. Panelists also will explain how this type of investment of resources can actually result in cost savings to the state.
Randall Kessler, moderator, private practitioner, Atlanta, GA
Diane Nunn, director, Center for Families, Children and the Courts, California Administrative Office of the Courts, San Francisco, CA
Pamela Cardullo Ortiz, executive director, Maryland Department of Family Administration, Maryland Administrative Office of the Courts, Annapolis, MD
Workshop #2 – Boutique Courts: A Friend or Foe of Unified Family Courts?
This workshop will explore the pros and cons of "boutique courts" in the context of a Unified Family Court setting. Also known as specialty courts, these courts have proliferated in the last decade, addressing issues that range from domestic violence to homelessness to substance abuse. Advocates say these courts provide specialized expertise and training for judges and court staff. This specialization enables them to address more effectively the problems that bring families into the justice system in the first place. Some judges, attorneys, and advocates raise concerns that the boutique courts splinter a UFC system, turn the court into a social service agency, and conflict with a Unified Family Court's consolidation of all family-related cases into one courthouse.
Gloria Danziger, moderator, senior fellow, Center for Families, Children and the Courts, University of Baltimore School of Law
Hon. Howard Lipsey, Rhode Island Family Court, Providence, RI
Hon. Lee Satterfield, Family Court, Washington, D.C.
Workshop #3 – Casey Family Programs–Foster Care Issues
This workshop will review recent research findings that illustrate the needs and strengths of youth placed in foster care related to physical health, mental health and education. Practical strategies to address those needs will be discussed. Panelists include a former foster youth, an expert in child welfare and youth access to mental health services, and a Superior Court judge who is also a published author on children's constitutional rights.
Peter Pecora, senior director of research services, Casey Family Programs, and professor in the School of Social Work, University of Washington, Seattle, WA
Vanessa Jones, program manager for youth services, Child Welfare League of America, Washington, D.C.
Hon. Tari S. Eitzen, Superior Court, Spokane County, WA