Gender Expansive Children in Domestic Relations Matters: Redefining “Best Interests” - a National Expert’s Direction  

 

Wednesday, May 11, 2022

12:00 - 1:00 PM

VIA Zoom- registration is required in order to be sent the Zoom instructions.  

 

Cost:

FREE- FLS section members

$10.00- Non-section members

   

  "Gender Expansive Children in Domestic Relations Matters: Redefining “Best Interests” - a National Expert’s Direction"  

 

Transgender, non-binary, or other minors exploring differing gender-related identities, present highly complex and rapidly evolving issues for parents, courts, and family professionals. “Gender expansive” is a term for these children, who are already experiencing the ups-and-downs inherent in childhood’s mental and physical development. Gender expansive issues are nuanced, often poorly understood by the public, and interplay with statutory considerations of “best interests” for these children and constitutional rights. Identities, pronouns, and personalities of gender expansive children are not always stable, making child-related issues of gender expansive children distinct from sexual orientation and other considerations affecting LGBTQ+ individuals.

The science of gender-identity development is rapidly evolving alongside highly politicized social mores, echoing previous state pressure on privacy and liberty rights of non-traditional families. Educating our legal community and affiliated professionals is essential to teach appropriate terminology, skills, and understanding the science of what is in a gender expansive child’s “best interests” under the law - and what isn’t. Knowledge of the distinct needs of these children is essential for providing informed legal advice to their families. Identifying and preventing harmful interference to families’ constitutional privacy and liberty interests is part of this legal learning.  

 

Our directed discussion features one of our nation’s foremost experts on these issues:  

 

Professor Marie-Amélie George, B.S.F.S., M.St., J.D., PhD.- Associate Professor M. A. George holds degrees from Georgetown University, the University of Oxford, a J.D. from Columbia Law School, and a PhD in history from Yale University. She is a faculty member at Wake Forest University School of Law, where she teaches courses in Civil Procedure and Family Law, specializing in LGBTQ+ rights. As a legal historian, she analyzes both how and why laws have changed, as well as the ways in which history can provide insight into current legal debates and contemporary normative questions. Her extensive work has been published, with additional publications forthcoming, in the nation’s top law reviews. She has twice received the prestigious Dukeminier Award, which recognizes the country’s most influential scholarship on sexual orientation and gender identity. Prior to joining Wake Forest, she held fellowships and positions at Harvard University and Columbia Law School, was a prosecutor at the Office of the Miami State Attorney, and was a litigation associate at Paul Weiss in New York City, where US Supreme Court Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan all began their legal careers.    

 

This program has applied for 1 CLE credit