Page 10 - Delaware Lawyer - Fall 2020

FEATURE
Hon. Michael K. Newell
The
Mother of Invention
How the Family Court pivoted to keep serving the public
“Beware the Ides of March” was the soothsayer’s warning to Julius Caesar before he was assassinated. The Delaware Judiciary faced a challenge in the second week of March as the first “positive” COVID patient in Delaware was diagnosed on March 11, 2020.
8 DELAWARE LAWYER FALL 2020
The Governor issued the Declaration of a State of Emergency effective Friday, March 13, and the Chief Justice quickly followed with an order declaring a judicial emergency effective March 16. The trial courts responded by issuing standing orders addressing upcoming hearings and the constraints that the emergency orders imposed. The judicial emergency order, inter alia, allowed the courts to grant con- tinuances, and authorized and encour- aged the use of “audiovisual devices to conduct proceedings.” Within a week, the Chief Justice had closed all court- houses to the public by Administrative Order No. 3, effective March 23.
The Family Court has expansive jurisdiction over virtually all matters
related to children and families. The cases in Family Court often involve stressful and sensitive family matters that do not improve when families are forced into a stay-at-home situation. How was the court going to carry out its obligation to the citizens of Dela- ware to protect children and families given the evolving situation created by the pandemic? The court faced the challenge of how to continue to hold hearings on petitions for Protec- tion from Abuse (PFA), conduct child welfare proceedings for children in foster care, and protect vulnerable children who were the alleged victims of abuse or were dependent or neglect- ed. The court had to hold hearings for detained juveniles and adults, and