The New York Times adds a little context to the looming custody issues following Michael Jackson’s death and the apparent change of heart by Debbie Rowe toward 12-year-old Michael Joseph Jackson Jr. and 11-year-old Paris Michael Katherine Jackson, 11. [An unidentified surrogate mother gave birth to 7-year-old Prince Michael Jackson II.]
Jonathan Glater and Liz Robbins […]

Posted in Law: Cases/Statutes, Something Different, General No Comments »

Parade Magazine shares some fatherly advice from our President.
President Barack Obama writes (excerpt):
. . . When we work hard, treat others with respect, spend within our means, and contribute to our communities, those are the lessons our children learn. And that is what so many fathers are doing every day—coaching soccer and Little League, […]

Posted in Families/Children, General 1 Comment »

CNN shows us the difference between controlling the outcome and controlling how we face the outcome.
Peter Bregman writes (excerpt):
So here’s the good news: You can change your results by changing your mind-set. When Dweck trained children to view themselves as capable of growing their intelligence, they worked harder, more persistently, and with greater success on […]

Posted in Relationships, Something Different, General No Comments »

The Grand Rapids Press reports on the passing of Judge Michael Smolenski, 64, who died from a rare neurological disease.
Nardy Baeza Bickel writes (excerpt):
Rretired Michigan Appeals Court Judge Michael Smolenski passed away Saturday night after battling a rare neurological disease in recent years and five months after voluntarily retiring because of his debilitating condition.
****
Sara Smolenski […]

Posted in General No Comments »

The New York Times reminds us that trial is inherently uncertain, a gamble that often does not payoff. The study to be published in September’s Journal of Empirical Legal Studies showed that 61 percent of plaintiffs who rejected settlement offers got less at trial and 24 percent of defendants who rejected offers paid more, […]

Posted in The Practice, Persuasion/Advocacy, General No Comments »

I keep finding news of males acting out sexually and violently.  It seems that guys get bad news for such behavior.  The news gets degendered and reported as criminal behavior by offenders.  Men aren’t born to commit such acts, but the male socialization process conditions men for this type of acting out.  Unfortunately, a great number […]

Posted in General 2 Comments »

Obituary for Judge Stephen Karr
Judge Stephen W. Karr, died on September 28, 2007. He was born on the Island of Samos, Greece on June 20, 1919, and emigrated to the United States with his parents, William and Angeline Karr, at the age of 13 months. He graduated from the University of Michigan Literary College […]

Posted in General 1 Comment »

The Grand Rapids Press reports on the death of Leontyne “Tina” Partee-Elder, a lawyer with “’such a big heart.’”
Barton Deiters writes (excerpt):
As an attorney, Leontyne “Tina” Partee-Elder represented some of the most hardened criminal offenders in the system.
But the man she feared enough to seek a restraining order against was her estranged husband.
****
“She was just […]

Posted in General No Comments »

In July 2007, the Grand Rapids, Michigan community was witness to four lives lost due to domestic violence. Three murders and one suicide asked families, schools, churches, neighborhoods, and the community at large to make sense of the violence around them.
Historically, we have tried to convince ourselves that domestic violence is a family problem, a […]

Posted in General No Comments »

The AP/New York Times peeks into the divorce proceedings involving the former Governor of New Jersey. The short piece illustrates common themes, including:
–judges want parents to use “common sense”
–judges want parents to facilitate age-appropriate activities
–judges want parents to minimize the potential effects of the proceedings and the parental conflict on the child
–judges focus primarily […]

Posted in General No Comments »

This was a young man drowning in lonliness, despair, and powerlessness.  He didn’t want to face another day of this misery, so he escaped in a morbid and violent hyper-masculine fantasy.  This fantasy came to fruition on a dreadful day for 32 people at Virginia Tech.  Many people are trying to make sense of this […]

Posted in General No Comments »

It was a warm, sunny evening.  I felt safely enveloped by the cozy surroundings of Empire along the Lake Michigan shoreline.  Escaping to the Leelanau Peninsula; a pilgrimage my wife Stephanie and I take often, since honeymooning there some 19 years ago.  As we walked to the lake, we noticed a group of young people […]

Posted in Something Different, General 1 Comment »

As a psychologist, I’ve done hundreds of assessments for men who batter.  When I determine after careful discernment of the data presented that a particular man has a problem with abusive behavior, one personality factor speaks loudly.  Men who batter lack empathy.  A close friend of mine who was raped once said, “If he knew what he […]

Posted in General No Comments »

Posted in General No Comments »

The 2006-2007 Officers of the State Bar of Michigan’s Family Law Section are:
David Sarnacki, Chair
Karen Sendelbach, Chair-elect
Carlo Martina, Treasurer
Barbara Kelly, Corresponding Secretary
Amy Yu, Recording Secretary

Posted in General No Comments »

The State Bar of Michigan will honor 13 members of the legal community at its 2006 Annual Meeting, which takes place Sept. 13-15 at the Ypsilanti Marriott at Eagle Crest. Eleven of the award recipients will be recognized at the SBM Awards Banquet on Wednesday, Sept. 13, while two will be honored by the Representative […]

Posted in General No Comments »

The Grand Rapids Press reports on Helen Brinkman and Mark Trusock advancing to November’s general election.
John Agar writes(excerpt):
Assistant Prosecutor Helen Brinkman and attorney Mark Trusock are used to putting together the best case and leaving it to a jury — or in this case, the voters — to reach the right decision.
Both candidates for the […]

Posted in General No Comments »

Kent County Family Division Referee Jon Ferrier is being honored with the State Bar of Michigan’s 2006 Champion of Justice Award. Jon is a past chairperson of the Family Law Section.
The State Bar award is given to practicing lawyers and judges of integrity and adherence to the highest principles and traditions of the legal […]

Posted in General No Comments »

The Judicial Candidate Forum for Kent County Circuit Court Candidates is this Thursday, July 13, 2006, at 7:00 PM, at the Wealthy Theatre. Each of the four candidates will field questions on their qualifications to serve as judge, and the audience will be encouraged to submit questions. Judge Gardner will be presiding over the […]

Posted in General No Comments »

20/20’s John Stossel addresses several myths of divorce (excerpt):
MYTH: Divorce hurts women much more than men, and many men abandon their kids.
TRUTH: Both men and women suffer after divorce, and lots of men want to give more to their kids.
****
[Sanford] Braver was surprised to discover that the [Lenore] Weitzman figures were wrong, the result of […]

Posted in General No Comments »