A DAY IN PART 15, by Judge Richard Ross

Judge Richard Ross
A Day in Part 15
Law & Order in Family Court

A Day in Part 15: Law & Order in Family Courtprovides a perceptive, enlightening chronicle of a typical day in the life of a family court judge — if any day can be deemed typical. The Bronx Family Court is the busiest family court in the country — each judge is expected to process 65 cases per day.

There, the courtrooms are fashioned from store spaces and hallways, a far cry from the somber mahogany-lined chambers of the mythical hallowed halls of justice. The all-too-human men and women who confront the violence, negligence, hysteria, and pathos must render decisions in haste, with the law and common sense as their guides. There are no juries in the New York City Family Court — the judge is both fact-finder and arbiter of the law.

Judge Ross offers us a play-by-play of a day in his life. By noon, Ross has dispatched with the basic fare of family court: attempted suicide, adoption and parental rights termination, paternity suits, child abuse and neglect, and juvenile delinquency. The hearings vary from one-minute proceedings and half-hour arraignments to full-blown trials. Rich in courtroom detail, A Day in Part 15 exposes the workload, caseload, and overload of today's system.

Richard Ross has been a New York City Family Court judge since 1991. He sat in Bronx County and is now supervising judge of the Family Court in Manhattan. After practicing law in New York, New Hampshire, and California, he was a senior staff attorney with the National Center for State Courts and director of programs and planning for the New York State court system. He lives in Manhattan with his wife and son.

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