This Dirty Little Secret Is Destroying American Culture: Bullying Judges And Attorneys

Here’s a subject that, I believe, is single handedly the biggest destroyer of American families, and it’s right under our noses. What makes this so heinous is that it’s being done by an entity that most people still believe is genuinely upholding the laws that support our American culture. Well, I’ve got news for you. It’s not. And just who is this heartless beast? It’s the family courts.

This video is a classic example of what can be found in most family courts across the country. Family court judges and attorneys are bullying the family right out of American culture.

Really. This isn’t just one extreme example of an abusive judge. This kind of thing really happens in family courts, everywhere.

Here’s a page with a great outline of what happens regularly in family courts. And while you read this, please remember that judges sit on the bench every day, and allow these atrocities. Every day!

Most of these acts are aimed at women, but men do suffer from these tactics as well.

This abuse/bullying can take many forms. The abuser may:

• bring repeated motions on issues that have already been decided
• fail to produce documents or information required in the court proceeding
• seek repeated delays for no real reason
• repeatedly change lawyers
• represent himself even when he has no financial need to do so
• make complaints about those involved in the process (lawyers, mediators, assessors, judges, etc.)
• make malicious and unfounded reports to the court and other officials about the woman
• appeal decisions even when there is no possibility of success
• fail to obey court orders

His overarching goal, of course, is to maintain his control over his partner, to intimidate her, to prevent her from moving on with her life and/or to wear her down to the point she agrees to return to him. The impacts on her may be varied:

Keep reading. There’s more

Are you surprised by this? Well, maybe you are, maybe not, but it gets worse. Not only are judges regularly adversarial, clients can find themselves being bullied by their own and opposing attorneys as well. Imagine paying upwards of $250 per hour to be abused by these officers of the court. It’s so bad, and prevalent, the American Bar Association has written about it.

Bullying lawyers and judges, Graham says, are no different from the playground bully: “The goal of bullying is to devalue and dehumanize the target or the other person.” Graham lists some traits and breeding grounds for bullies:

…Lawyer-to-lawyer bullying most often occurs during depositions.  Common signs are threats against the opposing counsel, obnoxious behavior and raised voices.

“The reason for this is because the bully wants to gain a tactical advantage,’’ says Enriquez. “Or they want to cover up their own insecurity on a particular issue or their own incompetence.”

… According to Judge Donnelly, bullying from the bench happens far too often.

 “Judicial bullying occurs when a judge actively departs from his or her intended role in the process,” he says. “When it occurs from the bench it does more damage to the public’s confidence in the judicial system than any attorney misconduct.”

Judicial bullying can occur due to a judge’s personal insecurity (“rather than learn the job, he or she uses the position to instill fear and intimidate parties; a judge should be welcoming”), lack of an understanding as to the proper role of a judge and a reluctance to do the job (“decide, rule, try the case”).

He cites examples of judicial bullying, including:

• Undue pressure to settle or compromise

• Belittling attorneys on and off the record

• Revealing bias on and off the record

• Placing unreasonable demands on attorneys’ time, such as rocket docket, no continuances, no extensions

• Holding attorneys accountable for events beyond their control

So, here’s what the article doesn’t address, directly. Ask anyone who’s ever been entangled in a family court issue, and dangerously close to going to trial. Many will tell you they experience extreme pressure and bullying from their own attorneys.

These folks have a vested interest in making clients acquiesce, against their wishes, to stay in the good graces of judges who don’t want to be challenged. After all, your case isn’t the only one they may have to argue in front of any given judge.

So, just where does one go to get justice, representation, protection, support when they are entangled in the legal system, for any reason. Divorce, domestic abuse, malicious prosecution, anything? The “system” is no longer set up to do those things.

If you’ve ever experienced this kind of abuse from in family courts, message me, or leave a comment below. Your comments will be kept in confidence.

Image: Source