The End of Family Court: How Abolishing the Court Brings Justice to Children and Families

The book "The End of Family Court" explores the failures of family court and calls for immediate and permanent change. It argues that the court's interventionist goals are steeped in racism, disdain for poverty, and assimilationist norms and that it demands individual rather than collective responsibility for the security and welfare of families. The author proposes concrete steps toward abolishing the court, such as shifting most family supports out of its sphere, reducing the types and number of matters that need court intervention, and ensuring that any case that requires legal adjudication has the due process protections of a court of law. An abolitionist approach celebrates a radical imagination that embraces and supports all families in a fair and equal economic and political democracy.

Format: Hardback
Length: 352 pages
Publication date: 01 August 2023
Publisher: New York University Press

The creation of the first juvenile court in the United States at the turn of the twentieth century was a response to the need for a therapeutic and compassionate system to address the challenges faced by children and families. However, the dream of a benevolent means of judicial problem-solving was never fully realized. A century later, children and families continue to be failed by the deeply flawed family court system.

In her book, The End of Family Court, Jane M. Spinak challenges the fundamental assumption that family court can be a positive force when intervening in family life. She argues that the procedures and policies of modern family court are deeply rooted in racism, a profound disdain for poverty, and assimilationist norms that aim to fix children and families who differ. The courts interventionist goals, driven by an approach to equity and well-being that emphasizes individual responsibility rather than collective responsibility for the security and welfare of families, remain deeply entrenched.

Spinak proposes concrete steps toward abolishing the family court system. She suggests shifting most family supports out of the courts sphere, significantly reducing the types and number of matters that require court intervention, and ensuring that any case that requires legal adjudication has the due process protections of a court of law. She also calls for strategies that center trusting and respecting the abilities of communities to create and sustain meaningful solutions for families.

An abolitionist approach, in contrast, celebrates a radical imagination that embraces and supports all families in a fair and equal economic and political democracy. It recognizes the importance of dismantling systems of oppression and discrimination that have perpetuated inequality and harm, and instead promotes policies and practices that promote equity, justice, and well-being for all.

The failures of family court are not just a matter of individual shortcomings or systemic flaws. They reflect the broader social and economic structures that perpetuate poverty, discrimination, and violence within communities. By advocating for the abolition of family court and promoting alternative approaches that center community-based solutions, we can work towards creating a more just and equitable society for all.

Dimension: 229 x 152 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781479814084