Values
Over the course of the initiative's intensive work with the FCEP sites, several themes emerged as each site engaged in efforts to improve their response to domestic violence in child custody cases. Building upon these themes in partnership with multiple stakeholders at each site, the FCEP identified five fundamental values that underlie the work. The five core values are described in more detail below. Click each icon for a full statement of the value and a link to examples of tools and resources the FCEP Courts and Partners developed that reflect or relate to that value.
Five underlying values
These values provide the foundation upon which the work at each site is based.
Safety and well-being of children and parents
We understand the safety and well-being of children and parents to include freedom from abuse in all of its forms: physical; sexual; coercive; and controlling. We also understand that the well-being of children and parents requires protection from the short- and long-term effects of abuse and trauma on children and adults. Communities and courts give expression to this fundamental value by, among other things, ensuring that custody and related decision-making is informed by research findings regarding the effects of abuse on children and adults; providing all litigants with access to support services, including safety planning and advocacy; and designing court and parallel processes to maximize safety and evaluating them on that basis.
Access to justice
We define access to justice as access to informed, trained decision-makers who act timely and decisively, and with authority to enforce orders; the ability of litigants to make informed, independent decisions; and court processes that are accessible to all litigants, including self-represented litigants and individuals from under-served communities, including those with disabilities and limited English proficiency.
View resources »
Due process
We understand due process to require that all litigants have a meaningful opportunity to be heard, that all judicial and non-judicial decision-makers are neutral and unbiased, that non-judicial court processes (custody evaluation, use of guardians ad litem, custody facilitators, etc.) include due process protections to the extent possible (and that parties are informed of any due process rights they give up), and that access to legal representation and/or legal advice is made available for all litigants, to the extent possible.
View resources »
Collaboration
Sustained, meaningful improvement of existing practices and processes is impossible without true collaboration among the diverse agencies and professional disciplines involved in child custody cases. Courts, including judicial officers, court administrators, and other personnel such as attorneys, advocates, guardians ad litem, and custody evaluators have a shared responsibility to facilitate litigants’ access to legal relief that is responsive to their and their children’s needs. Only by engaging collaboratively in forward-looking, problem-solving efforts can the key stakeholders hope to improve outcomes significantly for families in their court systems.
View resources »
Accountability and transparency
We define accountability and transparency to include the assessment of court and parallel processes for adherence to procedural justice principles of understanding, voice, respect, and neutrality, and the ongoing evaluation of processes by stakeholders capable of instituting necessary changes to ensure that services and processes offered match the descriptions provided to litigants.
View resources »
Browse resources by participating court
Cook County, IL Delaware Hennepin County, MN Multnomah County, OR