Putting Children's Interests First in US Family Law and Policy
With Power Comes Responsibility
Author: Helen M. Alvaré, George Mason University, Virginia
The well-being of children should be a social priority, and should consider the family circumstances into which children are born. Putting Children's Interests First in US Family Law and Policy: With Power Comes Responsibility details the rise of a federal policy of 'sexual expressionism', which prioritizes adults' interests over children's welfare. It describes the costs to children in the areas of family structure and stability, and the federal programs attempting to ameliorate the situation of non-marital children. Offering a detailed empirical and ethical critique both of 'sexual expressionism' and of the related federal programs, this study will be of interest to scholars and activists supporting children, women and the poor.
Demonstrates how federal law and policy favor adult sexual expression above children's welfare
Provides a feminist and anti-poverty case against the separation of sex from marriage
Explores the rise of a federal 'sexual expressionism' policy
1. The rise of sexual expressionism
2. Non-marital birth and child outcomes
3. To treat the wounded or to prevent their birth: two federal responses
4. An ethical and anthropological critique
5. Conclusion and recommendations.
Helen M. Alvaré, George Mason University, Virginia
Helen M. Alvaré is Professor of Law at the Scalia Law School at George Mason University, Virginia, where she teaches family law. For over three decades she has practiced family law and constitutional law, and writes in both scholarly and popular venues about the welfare of women and children. She has been an ABC news consultant, a Time Magazine '40 Under 40', an advisor to the National Institute on Child Health and Human Development, and a delegate to United Nations' meetings on women. She received her J.D. from Cornell University, New York.
Marriage at the Crossroads
Law, Policy, and the Brave New World of Twenty-First-Century Families
Family Policy and Disability
To Whom Do Children Belong?
Parental Rights, Civic Education, and Children's Autonomy
Legal Ethics in Child Custody and Dependency Proceedings
A Guide for Judges and Lawyers
Moral Status and Human Life
The Case for Children's Superiority
International Journal of Law in Context
The International Journal of Law in Context provides a forum for interdisciplinary legal studies and offers intellectual…
Canadian Journal of Law & Society / Revue Canadienne Droit et Société
The Canadian Journal of Law & Society (CJLS) is a bilingual periodical publishing cutting edge research in the broad…
Law & Social Inquiry
Arbitration, dispute resolution and mediation
English legal system
Equity and trusts
International economic and trade law, WTO law
Law: general interest
Legal skills and practice
Medico-legal, bioethics and health law
UN and international organisations