Cover; Half Title; Title Page; Copyright Page; Dedication; Table of Contents; Preface; Acknowledgments; 1. The family justice system: What it is, how it works, and an ideal unified family court model; Introduction; What is a family court?; The historical development; Current family court structure; Who is using family courts?; How are family courts performing?; The ideal: A unified family court; Separate court structure; Comprehensive subject-matter jurisdiction; Specialized case management and judicial assignment system; An array of services; A user-friendly court; Conclusion

2. The unified family court's ecological and therapeutic capacities: A crucial interdisciplinary paradigmIntroduction; The ecology of human development; Therapeutic jurisprudence; Putting the pieces together to improve family justice; The need for more components; Conclusion; 3. Equipping the family justice system with the ethic of care; Introduction; Defining care and the ethic of care; Historical background; The ethic of care and the law; The ethic of care versus the ethic of justice; Conclusion; 4. Family narratives and caring justice; Introduction; Defining narrative; Narrative law

Narrative practiceNarrative and the law: An historical perspective; The importance of narrative; Narrative attributes; How narrative works: Narrative competence and narrative capacities; Narrative competence; Narrative capacities; Conclusion; 5. Applying an ethic of care to the family justice system: The transformative power of caring and narrative; Introduction; Summarizing ethic of care and narrative concepts; Envisioning the family justice system as a care center; The role of narrative in promoting care; Is caring teachable?; Conclusion; 6. Portraits of caring; Introduction

Court facilities and aestheticsSpecialty court programs; Courts targeting young children; Girls court; Minors' court, Reggio Calabria, Italy; Aboriginal children's court program, Australia; A floating court on the Amazon, Brazil; Court-supplied services; Court-based childcare programs; Court-based family services; Translation services; Court-community connections; Court policies; Training for judges and court personnel; Court procedures; Caring judges; Judicial opinions; Judicial reflections; Conclusion: Caring family courts; Index