A plea that family difficulties be ironed out in one all-embracing court rather than in the many unrelated courts, as is the present practice, was made last night by Judge Jonah J. Goldstein at Temple Emanu-El.
Discussing “The Family in Court,” Judge Goldstein declared that the most practical method of effecting the needed change lies in changing the point of view with which family troubles are regarded.
“In short,” he said, “courtrooms should be replaced by conference rooms; family problems should be diagnosed and treated on a clinical basis instead of, as at present, tried in and by a court.
“A family court does not need the traditional furnishings of the usual court room; these are really a detriment. Those who come there are not criminals; the customary legal procedure, its rules of evidence, its insistence on answers of ‘yes’ and ‘no’ have no place here. The principal object is adjustment of family disputes and the reconciliation, if possible, of husbands and wives who are often both partially at fault.”
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The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
