Reconceiving the Family: Critique on the American Law Institute's Principles of the Law of Family Dissolution

This 2006 book provides a critical examination of and reflection on the American Law Institute's (ALI) Principles of the Law of Family Dissolution: Analysis and Recommendations ('Principles'), arguably the most sweeping proposal for family law reform attempted in the US over the last quarter century. The volume is a collaborative work of individuals from diverse perspectives and disciplines who explore the fundamental questions about the nature of family, parenthood, and child support. The contributors are all recognized authorities on aspects of family law and provide commentary on the principles examined by the ALI - fault, custody, child support, property division, spousal support and domestic partnerships, utilizing a wide range of analytical tools, including economic theory, constitutional law, social science data and linguistic analysis. This volume also includes the perspectives of US judges and legislators and leading family law scholars in the United Kingdom, Europe, Canada and Australia.

Table of Contents:
Foreword Mary Ann Glendon; Introduction Robin Fretwell Wilson; Part I. Fault: 1. Beyond fault and no-fault in the law of marital dissolution Lynn D. Wardle; 2. A city without duty, fault or shame Scott FitzGibbon; Part II. Custody: 3. Partners, caregivers, and the constitutional substance of parenthood David Meyer; 4. Custody law and the ALI's principles: a little history, a little policy, and some very tentative judgments Robert J. Levy; 5. Undeserved trust: reflections on the American Law Institute's treatment of de facto 'parents' Robin Fretwell Wilson; Part III. Child Support: 6. Asymmetric Parenthood Katharine Baker; 7. Paying to stay home: on competing notions of fairness and the imputation of income Mark Strasser; Part IV. Property Division: 8. The ALI property division principles: a model of radical paternalism John Gregory; 9. Unprincipled family dissolution: The American Law Institute's recommendations for division of property David Westfall; 10. You and me against the world: marriage and divorce from creditors' perspective Marie T. Reilly; Part V. Spousal Support: 11. Back to the future: the perils and promise of a backward looking jurisprudence June Carbone; 12. Money as emotion and the distribution of wealth at divorce Katharine Silbaugh; 13. Solidifying the 'no-fault' revolution: post modern marriage as seen through the Lens of ALI's 'compensatory payments' Katherine Spaht; Part VI. Domestic Partnership: 14. Domestic partnership and default rules Margaret F. Brinig; 15. Private ordering under the ALI Principles Martha Ertman; 16. Marriage matters: what's wrong with the ALI's Domestic Partnership Proposal Marsha Garrison; 17. Domestic partnership, implied contracts, and law reform Elizabeth Scott; Part VII. Agreements: 18. Premarital agreements in the ALI principles: the move towards abolition of state marriage laws Jane Adolphe; 19. The ALI principles and agreements: seeking a balance between status and contract Brian H. Bix; 20. The principles on agreements and international law Barbara Stark; Part VIII. Judicial and Legislative Perspectives: 21. A formula for fool's gold: the illustrative child support formula in chapter 3 of the American Law Institute's Principles of the Law of Family Dissolution Maura Corrigan; 22. A response to the Principles' Domestic Partnership Scheme Jean Hoefer Toal; Part IX. International Reflections: 23. Individualism and responsibility John Eekelaar; 24. The ALI's past child-caretaking standard in comparative perspective Patrick Parkinson; 25. Economic consequences of divorce: a Scandinavian perspective on the ALI principles Tone Sverdrup; Afterword Carl Schneider.

About the Author :
Robin Fretwell Wilson is an Associate Professor of Law at the University of Maryland School of Law. She is the co-editor of a forthcoming volume entitled The Handbook of Children, Culture & Violence (Sage Publications, 2005) and has published articles on the risks of abuse to children in the Cornell Law Review, the Emory Law Journal, the San Diego Law Review, and the Journal of Child and Family Studies. Professor Wilson has testified on the use of social science in legal decision-making in Joint Hearings before the Federal Trade Commission and Department of Justice. A member of the Executive Committee of the Family and Juvenile Law Section of the Association of American Law Schools, Professor Wilson frequently lectures on violence to children, including presentations at the Family Law Project by Harvard University Law School and Yale University's Edward Zigler Center for Child Development and Social Policy.

Review :
The Principles consolidate many of the transformative trends in family law since the 1970's and recommend further, far-reaching changes. This rich collection of essays by so many distinguished judges, practitioners, and scholars, with diverse viewpoints, will surely raise the level of the national conversation about where family law has been, where it is now, and where it ought to be headed." From the Foreword by Mary Ann Glendon , Learned Hand Professor of Law Harvard Law School This is a major contribution to the field of family law as a volume putting the ALI Principles in perspective and providing thoughtful commentary is urgently needed. Without hesitation, I enthusiastically recommend Reconceiving the Family." Claire Huntington, Professor of Law, University of Colorado School of Law "This book is important and timely. The subject matter is of enormous significance. Not only has the American family been undergoing almost revolutionary reconfigurations over the past generation, public opinion about the ways in which law should reflect these changes has also shifted rapidly. The American Law Institute focused its enormous talents on developing Principles of the Law of Family Dissolution and carefully considered all of the significant questions raised by these changing family forms. The contributors to this volume broadly examine issues contained in the Principles which are sufficiently weighty and complicated that they must be discussed from multiple perspectives." Martin Guggenheim, Fiorello LaGuardia Professor of Clinical Law, New York University School of Law