THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, February 23, 1996 TAG: 9602230003
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A10 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Opinion
SOURCE: By ARNOLD L. STOLBERG
LENGTH: Medium: 88 lines
All too often, Virginia's court system fails the families it is designed to serve.
As a psychologist who studies the impact of divorce, I've seen firsthand too many cases of how the current court process destroys both parents and their children. In one example, a family of four faced divorce. As is the case with 10 percent of all divorces, the family sought resolution to their disputes in a state Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court. After waiting four months for the hearing, the mother was awarded custody of the two children, while the father was granted ``liberal visitation.'' Unhappy with the decision, he chose to rehear the dispute in Circuit Court. This simple process involved no formal appeal or case review.
The second run through the courts distressed everyone. The parents became more polarized on the issue of custody and visitation, fighting constantly in front of the children. The children's grades dropped, and they began having trouble getting along with their friends. The children's self-esteem was shattered.
A year after filing the original dispute, the family entered the courtroom again. Cases were presented, and the judge upheld the Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court decision. The verdict wasn't surprising, since 90 percent of cases retried in the Circuit Court yield no changes.
The cost to the family was profound. Thousands were spent to retry the case, and the children suffered serious adjustment problems. The parents, who no longer can work together for their children, discovered their enjoyment of the parenting process had been compromised.
Yes, Virginia had failed one of the families it promised to protect and support.
Virginia continues to miss a critical opportunity to help its families. The General Assembly has again considered and again rejected restructuring the system that resolves disputes relating to children, adolescents and families. The current structure suffers from several procedural problems. First, two separate courts hear family disputes, with one, the Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court, often having its disputes retried by the other, the Circuit Court, at the simple request of a disputant. This often leads to substantially more time to reach a final decision - in some cases more than a year - and more attorneys' fees and court costs. In addition, judges with the most-specialized training and experience with families, the Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court judges, have the least decision-making authority.
The General Assembly already has studied the problem and has agreed on a solution. In the early 1990s, a rigorous statewide project, conducted at the request of the State Supreme Court of Virginia, introduced the Family Court. All disputes relating to children, adolescents and families were argued in that court, which received power and authority equal to the Circuit Court. Disputes could not automatically be reheard at the request of a dissatisfied litigant, and participating judges were trained in unique matters relating to the family and to child and adolescent development.
The pilot Family Court was successful at achieving legal, financial, psychological and litigant goals. Disputes were resolved more quickly, cost less and were reheard less often. The cases also resulted in better adjustive outcomes for children and more cooperative relations between parents. The Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court/Family Court scored particularly high marks on family satisfaction, sensitivity of the judges and positive psychological impact.
The General Assembly overwhelmingly acknowledged the effectiveness of the Family Court. In 1993, legislators approved the Family Court, as implemented in the pilot, to replace the current, two-tiered system, but they failed to fund the altered structure. Each year since, including this session, legislators have failed to provide financial support for this needed change. The battle has been lost to funding disputes, party differences over judicial appointments and protection of the current Circuit Court operation, while our families continue to suffer.
Our lawmakers must accept their responsibilities to Virginia's families and children. A more effective and sensitive structure for hearing family disputes can be created. The Family Court has been shown to promote family functioning and cooperation, as well as to avoid serious pitfalls of the current design. While perhaps initially expensive to implement, this unified approach would result in substantially fewer cases in the circuit courts and far less unnecessary relitigation. Families would benefit from timelier resolutions with less psychological fallout.
Virginians are searching for solutions to many family, education and mental-health problems plaguing our society. We must accept the temporary costs of institutional revision for demonstrated benefits of such change. There is still time to reconsider the great advantage of the Family Court. MEMO: Mr. Stolberg, a professor of psychology at Virginia Commonwealth
University, served on the team that evaluated the Family Court pilot. by CNB