Family Law

When trying to discipline teens, how much is too much?

Netflix’s Hell Camp: Teen Nightmare, released in December 2023, sounds like a cheesy 1980s slaughter-fest horror film. Sadly, the events relayed by the documentary are far from fiction.

Aug 20, 2024 8:52 AM CDT

Guardians ad litem have absolute immunity in suit alleging wrongful conduct, appeals court says

Lawyers representing a child as guardians ad litem are absolutely immune for acts happening within their court-appointed duties, even for acts alleged to be “wrongful and illegal,” a federal appeals court has ruled.

Aug 12, 2024 9:16 AM CDT

The issues of no-fault divorce, a target of JD Vance and conservatives

With his elevation to Republican vice-presidential nominee, Sen. JD Vance’s provocative views about divorce—that people do it too easily, shifting “spouses like they change their underwear”—have turned the spotlight on a bubbling movement to end what is known as no-fault divorce.

Aug 8, 2024 10:50 AM CDT

Rule change to allow paraprofessionals to offer limited legal services proposed by top Texas court

The Texas Supreme Court is seeking comment on a proposal that would allow qualified nonlawyers to provide some legal services to low-income Texans.

Aug 7, 2024 10:19 AM CDT

Victims of sex assault should not have to disclose it when applying for bar admission, House says

Bar applicants should not have to disclose a history of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, sexual harassment or stalking, the ABA House of Delegates said Tuesday.

Aug 6, 2024 1:05 PM CDT

US should recognize gender as a protected class in immigration proceedings, House says

The House of Delegates overwhelmingly adopted a measure seeking to strengthen protections for victims of gender-based violence at the ABA Annual Meeting in Chicago on Tuesday.

Aug 6, 2024 1:00 PM CDT

Police shouldn’t lie to minors during questioning, ABA House says

At the ABA Annual Meeting on Monday, the House of Delegates considered a resolution that addresses police questioning of minors.

Aug 5, 2024 7:01 PM CDT

Shaken-baby murder conviction overturned after defendant offers evidence questioning diagnosis

The Michigan Supreme Court has granted a new trial to a woman convicted of killing her infant daughter by shaking her, holding that proposed expert testimony on shaken baby syndrome would likely result in an acquittal.

Jul 29, 2024 3:11 PM CDT

DOJ sues nonprofit that houses migrant children, accusing staff of sexual abuse

The country’s largest private provider of housing for unaccompanied immigrant children subjected some in its care to pervasive sexual abuse and harassment for almost a decade, the U.S. Justice Department is alleging in a lawsuit.

Jul 19, 2024 9:10 AM CDT

Why parents are being punished for the crimes of their children

Parental responsibility is being put to the test. The big question now remains: Where is the line, and how much parental nudging is too little?

Jul 2, 2024 2:52 PM CDT

Ban on gender-affirming care for transgender minors will be reviewed by Supreme Court

The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday agreed to review the constitutionality of a Tennessee law that bans gender-affirming surgeries, puberty blockers and hormones for transgender minors.

Jun 24, 2024 12:23 PM CDT

Gun laws aren’t ‘trapped in amber,’ SCOTUS says while upholding restraining-order gun ban

The U.S. Supreme Court on Friday upheld a federal law banning gun possession by those who are subject to domestic-violence restraining orders.

Jun 21, 2024 10:03 AM CDT

Netflix’s true-crime documentary about woman stalking man flows like book you can’t put down

It’s rare to find a true-crime documentary that is equal parts entertaining, educational and polished to the point of resembling something you’d see on the silver screen. Netflix’s new documentary Lover, Stalker, Killer meets those criteria, though, all the while finding a way to fit an incredibly engaging narrative into…

Jun 20, 2024 1:25 PM CDT

Judge who cut bail for man linked to later fatal arson had cited his right to counsel

Updated: A judge in Maine is being blamed for reducing bail for a man who was later shot and killed in a standoff with police on Saturday after he allegedly set a fire that killed a person.

Jun 17, 2024 3:31 PM CDT

Retirement: The final frontier

I recently retired after practicing family law for 25 years. I enjoyed the practice of law, but as you can imagine, my job had its share of stress and anxiety.

Jun 13, 2024 8:30 AM CDT