CHRISTMAS EVE 2014 ~ REFLECTIONS FROM RON PHILLIPS
For the first time in my 20 years as a lawyer, I spent this Christmas Eve in Family Court. I am a trial lawyer, so I am used to having my personal schedule determined by an unsympathetic Court that needs to process an incredible number of cases in a short period of time. Since I practice both family law and criminal defense, I am also used to the spike that occurs in Court activity around the Christmas holiday. This, however, was a first. It seems that with each passing year the number of holiday filings increase and the accusations get more plentiful but with less merit. More Petitions for Emergency Custody and Petitions for Protection from Abuse mean more and more children and families are awaiting a ruling from a Family Court Judge or Commissioner to find out how they will spend their Christmas break.
FAMILY COURT ON CHRISTMAS EVE
This year as I entered the Court on the day before Christmas, in addition to seeing Christmas sweaters on the family Court staff, I also saw a waiting room full of mothers, fathers, young children, and interested family members, all looking very apprehensive and serious. I wondered what each of them would be doing the next morning. I was curious as to whether their Christmas day would be better or would be a bitter disappointment depending on how their trip to family Court went. I also began to think about the impact this day would have on the futures of the children involved. What would it be like down the road when the children of these proceedings graduate or get married? Will the children have to play mediator between a mom and dad who still don’t get along? Will the joy of those special occasions instead be a time of anxiety and fear, wondering how two acrimonious families will interact at a gathering that mixes the two? Will the children simply avoid any event that promises potential conflict? How will this event shape their own future relationships?
While practicing as a family law attorney, I believed our job was more than just to win the battle in front of us. It was also more than getting our clients what they want at that moment.
Since writing this article, Ron Phillips has stopped practicing in the area of Family Law to focus solely on Criminal law.
FAMILY LAW ATTORNEY AT MURRAY, PHILLIPS & GAY
The job of a Family Law Attorney is to help our clients and their children through these life-altering events with care, concern, and sensitivity. This means helping our client remember that there is a long term goal that needs to be considered. As we lay out and argue the implications of the law of 13 Del.C Section 722 and 728 and how the facts of the case should be viewed, we also need to remember that what happens today in Court could last a lifetime for a child. We will not always be successful in helping our clients achieve a harmonious resolution. Nevertheless, that should wherever possible, be our goal. We need to remember that every “Win” comes with a consequence and every conflict comes at the cost of relationship, time and energy. This is true not only for the parents who are our clients but also for the children who spend their formative years awaiting a decision from a judge while lawyers argue which parent’s position serves the best interest of the child, how much contact the children should have with each parent and where the children should spend their Christmas holiday.
Beginning in September of 2018, both Julie Murray and Ron Phillips joined forces with Tom Gay. Mr. Gay rounds out the firm by offering family law. Mr. Gay has over 25 years of experience and is considered by many as the premier domestic law attorney in Delaware.
If you are looking for representation in a divorce, property division, and alimony, as well as custody/visitation disputes, please call the Delaware Family Law attorneys at the Law Offices of Murray, Phillips & Gay to discuss your Delaware family law case. Dial 302-855-9300 (Georgetown) or 302-422-9300 (Milford) or 302-628-9300 (Seaford).