Law Office of Gerald Solomon, P.A.

Remember the movie “Pleasantville” where everybody had good jobs and happy households? The children were perfect and responded to discipline and everyone smiled. However, soon after the black and white movie started the characters started to acquire knowledge of the real world as shown by them transforming from black and white into color. Not every child was perfect and not every marriage was rosy.

Factors for a Maryland child custody are in black and white. However, Maryland judges who rule in a child custody case do not live in a black and white Pleasantville world, they live in a real world with a full spectrum of color. One judge may see Mrs. Smith a wearing a blue dress, while the judge across the hall may see Mrs. Smith in a yellow dress. So long as they are labeling it a dress, it can be a color of their own choosing, including green.

While judges bring the wisdom of life experience and law to the bench, they also bring their own parenting baggage to the bench. Judges who physically disciplines their children will not readily entertain a claim by one parent that physical discipline is improper in raising a child.

There are times when judge’s comments are comical. For example, one time a litigant presented an image of a totally dysfunctional family with very little pleasant family time. At the close of the case the judge, in giving the dysfunctional parent custody, commented that he found nothing wrong with that family unit, in fact “it appears to function better than my own family!”

The legal child custody factors in Maryland are in black and white. Color them to influence the judge. For example, suppose that your wife is living with another man and you feel that this is harmful to the children. You probably do not want to emphasize this to the judge if the judge’s daughter is also separated from her husband and living with somebody else. Since you will probably not know your judge until the day of trial you will not be able to determine how much this impacts your case until you get to court.

In evaluating your case add the following words to the facts in your case – “and this is important because . . .” Fox example, let us assume that your spouse smokes. Does smoking disqualify someone as a parent? The judge may smoke (and yes, I remember appearing before a pregnant judge smoking in her chambers in violation of a county ordinance prohibiting smoking in the courthouse). Compare with (if true) my spouse smokes and this is important because she/he smokes around the child who is allergic to smoke and suffers from asthma.

When a judge hears a criminal case he/she is generally not a criminal. When a judge hears a breach of contract case he/she is generally not a party to a contract that has been breached. But when a judge hears a family law matter the judge is also a part of a family subject to all of the emotions, joys and concerns. Judges are not immune from good and bad parenting or good and bad life experiences. They carry this information into the courtroom and into their decisions.  Remember this when presenting your case.

Jerry Solomon*

Jerry Solomon is a Maryland divorce and child custody attorney who has practiced family law for over twenty five years.