Family Courts

History

Prior to the Progressive Era, juveniles were treated mostly like adults, subject to the same punishments [Page 159]and treatments. Those who helped establish the first family courts focused on rehabilitation and treatment of juveniles and their families. In 1912, New Jersey granted juvenile courts the jurisdiction to hear all domestic disputes. In 1914, Ohio took a broader approach to family matters by creating the Division of Domestic Relations in the Hamilton County Court of Common Pleas. The court was granted jurisdiction over the domestic relations issues of divorce, alimony, contributing to delinquency of children, early forms of child support, and the juvenile issues of delinquency, dependency, and neglected and crippled children.

There was little development in this area until 1959, when the Standard Family Court Act was put forth. This act was championed by several well-regarded groups, such as the National Probation and Parole Association, the National Council of Juvenile Court Judges, and the U.S. Children's Bureau. These groups called for a separate and distinct court in each state that dealt exclusively with family matters, and what it considered “family matters” covered a broad range of issues. The law stated that family courts should cover traditional areas, such as divorce, child support, and custody matters, but it also suggested that the family courts take on several criminal issues, such as crimes committed against a child by a parent and criminal charges against adults for abandoning or failing to provide support for children. The law also stated that these courts should take over mental health issues, such as involuntary commitment of both adults and juveniles, and areas tangential to family matters, such as the granting of permission for juveniles to marry and become employed.

The 800 Broadway building in Cincinnati, Ohio, houses the Hamilton County courts. In 1914, Ohio created a domestic relations division of the Hamilton County court with jurisdiction over issues of divorce, juvenile delinquency, dependency, and neglected and handicapped children.

(Wikimedia/Derek Jensen)

The philosophy behind the Standard Family Court Act held that nonadversarial and therapeutic procedures were the best way to deal with juvenile and family problems. It suggested that the best way to help families was to use judges with specialized dispute resolution training and ensure that these judges would have complete records on all matters related to the family so as to be able to put forth the best suggestions for them. In 1980, the American Bar Association added its support, stating that each state should develop a unified family court.

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